The Pro Hero's Daughter
by UnoriginalToast
Summary: Seven years after her second chance at life, Eri is a normal twelve-year-old on the cusp of entering Middle School. But when demons from her past find her, Eri must either choose between who she is and who she wants to be, or determine for herself if they are the same thing. [Future Fic / Older!Eri / Dadzawa]
1. Eri Aizawa

"Pencils down! Please make sure your name is at the top of your papers and pass your exams to the front."

Eri's head snapped up, eyes first searching her teacher's face for any sign that he was joking before she glanced to the clock above the door. There was no mistaking the time. Class would be over within the next few minutes. Cursing softly under her breath, she scribbled down one last sentence on her paper that she hoped would tie her essay together and handed it to the waiting hand in front of her.

Once her paper was whisked away from her, she tucked a loose strand of vibrant white hair behind her ear and rested her cheek in the palm of her hand. The history test had been more difficult than she anticipated and she'd lingered a little too long on the multiple choice questions, leaving little time for complete essays. Hopefully, she'd get just enough points to earn her at least a B. With the semester about to wrap up, she couldn't afford to let her grades slip too far.

Desks scratched against the linoleum floor moments before the bell actually rang. As soon as the shrill sound filled the classroom, Eri tossed her bookbag over her shoulder and filed out of the room with everyone else. At least the school day was over and Eri could enjoy the next hour at her music club before heading home. As a bonus, it was Wednesday and Eri was looking forward to the miso ramen Lunch Rush made every week.

"Hey, Eri!" At the sound of her name, Eri spun around and grinned when she saw her friend Yuki running towards her. She and Yuki had been friends since grade 1, but they were in different classes this year, so they always made a point to meet up after school. It was another glorious reminder of the end of the day and a chance for Eri to put the test out of her mind.

Yuki was a plain looking girl with brown eyes and jet black hair. She had a bright, bubbly personality and dreams of becoming a TV show host. Her quirk was also perfect for her journalistic aspirations. Once she read a word, she would always remember the spelling. It wasn't quite a photographic memory, but it did make her ineligible for the yearly school-wide spelling bee.

"How did you do on your history test?" Yuki asked, falling into step with Eri as they made their way down the hall and towards the stairs.

Eri shrugged. "Good, I think," she replied, setting her foot down onto the first step. "At least, I hope so."

"I'm sure you did fine," Yuki told her, waving off her friend's concerns. "You always do better than you think and besides," the girl flashed a devilish grin, "There's always the final."

Eri blanched at the idea. "Don't remind me," she muttered, rubbing the side of her face with her hand. "Because with the history final comes the math final and the English final and every other final for all of our other subjects. I just want it to be Winter break already!"

"Speaking of Winter, what are you doing for your birthday?" Yuki asked. The girls stepped off the last stair in the flight and turned to walk down the next.

Eri shrugged. Her birthday was on December 21st, the first day of Winter and just a day after finals ended. The looming threat of her finals took precedence in her mind, as they did every year since grades really started to matter for her.

"I don't know," she answered after a moment. "I told my dad I wanted a cat for my birthday, but the dorms at UA don't allow pets, even for teachers. He said he's working with the principal but I don't have my hopes up. So probably just gonna get some cake."

"Maybe if you can't get a cat, he'll get you something nice," Yuki suggested. The pair had gotten down the stairs and were walking down the first-floor hall towards the music room. "Like a new dress or those jeans we saw at the mall the other day."

Eri immediately shook her head with a hearty laugh. "Hopefully not! You should have seen the kimono he got me for UA's summer festival last year. Did you know they make them in neon pink? Not very traditional if you ask me!"

Yuki joined in on her laughter, vividly remembering Eri in her bright pink garments. With her already bright colored hair and glaring red eyes, she looked like a highlighter. At least Eri was still at an age where pleasing her father trumped whatever anyone else thought of her outfit. She might have looked a little silly, but her dad was so happy to see her in what he'd picked out. She was easily able to ignore the few double takes.

"I really just want this semester to be over," Eri continued. "Math this year was brutal and I think next semester's Rise of Asia History class will be a _lot_ more interesting than this one's European History." Yuki nodded in great agreement. The girls had reached the music room but stopped outside the door to chat a little longer. Yuki leaned against the wall and Eri thumbed the strap of her backpack. It felt nice to be free for the day. It was like a weight had been lifted off of her shoulders.

"Soon enough," Yuki replied as she pushed herself off the wall and spun on her heels to face the door. Eri followed her inside and the two took their seats on the second raised platform in the third row of chairs. Eri set down her bag and grabbed her flute while Yuki did the same. That was how they met-both girls had chosen to play the flute back in grade one and sat next to each other during their music class. So many years later, neither were sure if they actually _liked_ playing the flute, or if music just reminded them of the beginning of their friendship.

The music teacher walked in and promptly started with some simple songs to warm up. They then moved onto some more complicated pieces they would be playing for the Winter Festival in a month's time. While she played, Eri freed her mind of birthday and school-related thoughts. She might not have been the best flute player, but she certainly enjoyed the way she was able to escape into the music and let everything else melt away.

So, it startled her quite badly when the loudspeaker popped on. Instruments wailed off key for a moment as other students were also shocked out of their focus. In an instant, the once lively room fell silent and all eyes rested on the intercom at the front of the room.

"Yes?" the music teacher called out, clearly annoyed at the interruption.

"Apologies, could you please send Eri Aizawa to the main office immediately?" replied the invisible voice.

Eri jolted at her name, more curious about what the office could need her past school hours to be embarrassed by all the other kids looking at her. Yuki's eyes met hers and Eri shrugged in response as she gathered her things. As she slung her back over her shoulder, she caught the little wave Yuki shot back before she turned to head out of the classroom.

"She's on her way," the music teacher confirmed as Eri shut the door behind her.

The main office wasn't far from the music room. It was on the same floor, but more towards the front of the school two hallways away. The school day had been over for about thirty minutes, so the halls were deserted. Everyone had either gone home or were at their various club meetings. It was eerie, Eri thought, to wander the halls without the sounds of rambunctious kids. It was her last year in the primary school, so she'd no longer share a campus with lively seven-year-olds. She'd be off to middle school and things would start to get a lot more serious from there.

Being the daughter of a relatively famous, though underground, hero while living on the campus of the country's most prestigious high school naturally led to a lot of questions from well-meaning people. She was constantly asked what kind of hero she wanted to be, but Eri wasn't sure she _wanted_ to be a hero. She liked the idea of a regular job, like what Yuki wanted to do, but she also didn't know if that would disappoint her father.

Aizawa almost never talked about hero business. If a fight came on the news, he shut it off and would scold Eri for watching what he considered "a flashy show that's only job was to boost ratings." Of course, there were many different ways to become a hero. One didn't have to be in the spotlight like All Might or Deku. There were those like Eraserhead who shied from the spotlight but were still passionate about the work they did. Still, Eri didn't have much reason to believe he would be upset with her for not following a hero path. He never forced her into activities she didn't want to do or hobbies she wouldn't enjoy. Maybe it was more that other people expected that of her and she didn't want to disappoint _anyone_. Either way, guilt still pooled in her stomach whenever she thought about her future.

She pushed the door open and stopped short when she saw All Might standing at the front counter. He looked as thin and frail as ever, but something about his looming stature seemed even more ominous today. There was also the fact that the man had never come to her school before and Eri tensed unconsciously.

"Young Eri," All Might greeted as Eri stepped into the office. He set down the pen in his hand that Eri assumed was used to sign her out. Eri noticed that he seemed paler, causing the redness on his cheeks to stand out even more than usual. He also seemed thinner, if that was even possible, and the tip of a bloody handkerchief stuck out from the right pocket of his pants.

"Uncle Might," Eri said slowly, taking another cautious step. "What are you doing at my school?"

"I've come to pick you up." Something in his voice made Eri think there was more to the story, but he didn't say anything else. Instead, he placed a hand on her back and guided her out of the office to the front doors of the school. Normally, Eri walked home with Yuki, at least for the first fifteen minutes before Yuki split off onto a side street to get home. Eri would continue down the main drag until she came upon the UA campus. With a specially made ID, she was able to get in through the main gate and from there she would head straight for the dorms. So, there was no need for Eri to be picked up. In fact, the last time she'd been picked up was two years ago when she got sick in school and her dad came to get her.

But this time, Eri was guided through the parking lot and towards a sleek looking black car. She slipped into the passenger's seat and All Might took the wheel.

"What's going on, Uncle Might?" Eri asked as the man put the car into drive. "Why are you picking me up? Is everything okay?"

"Everything is fine, Eri. There's just been a small incident and I was asked to take you over to the hospital."

A gasp escaped Eri's lips and she gripped the edge of her seat. "The hospital? For what? Did something happen?" She froze as the cold sting of realization set in. "Dad! Is he-"

"He's fine," All Might tried to calm her down, placing a hand on her shoulder while keeping the other hand on the wheel. "There was a bit of a tussle downtown and your father got a little banged up. He's alright." Eri frowned up at him and when All Might looked back at her as he stopped for pedestrians, he could tell she didn't believe him. "Really," he emphasized.

Eri still wasn't satisfied, but it was clear All Might had no more information he could or wanted to give. She slumped back into her seat and gazed out the window at the passing buildings. Every now and then, she felt All Might's eyes on her whenever he could spare a glance, but he didn't say anything else.

It wasn't long before they'd made it to the hospital and Eri found herself peering over another counter in a much whiter, more sterile smelling office. All Might was talking to the nurse seated at the counter, but Eri gazed beyond her, watching as the other nurses typed away on their computers or jotted something down on their clipboards.

This wasn't the first time Eri had found herself back in a hospital. Of course, her relationship with her father had its genesis in this very hospital, in a small room in the pediatric ward. She hardly remembered those days, partly because of how high her fever had been and partly because she was only six. The only thing she could vividly remember was one very early morning when she'd blearily blinked her eyes open to find her dad sitting at her bedside grading papers by the light of the lamp on her nightstand. He'd set his work down and talked to her about nothing particularly important until she drifted back to sleep.

Then, there was the time her appendix almost burst. It was the first time she'd ever seen her dad as worried as he had been. He didn't leave her side for days and let her eat as much ice cream as she wanted when she got out of the hospital.

Of course, she didn't go to the hospital just for herself. She'd been there plenty of times for her friends, especially Deku, who seemed to have a hobby of finding new ways to get himself injured. She also distinctly remembered the time she had to go to the hospital to see her dad after a serious run-in with one of the top members of the League of Villains three years prior. It was scary, but Deku and Mirio were there along with Uncle Mic and Uncle Might. They brought her to and from the hospital so she could be with her dad until he'd recovered fully.

Now, she didn't know if this would be a similar story. Would she have to sit at his bedside waiting for him to wake up? How long would that take? On top of finals and music practice and everything else, she didn't know if she could handle something bad happening to her dad.

"Eri." All Might's voice shook her from her thoughts and she snapped her head up to meet his hollow blue eyes. His frown deepened once he got a good look at her face. "He's alright, I promise. Don't cry."

Eri frowned right back at him, but it was only the mention of tears that made her realize a few had slipped onto her cheeks. Impatiently, she dragged the back of her hand across her face and wiped it on her skirt.

She followed All Might down the long hall until he stopped short at a seemingly random door. Eri watched as the man tapped lightly on the door, then immediately reached for the door handle without waiting for a response.

The hospital room was like any of the numerous ones she'd been in before. Large picture window, small white bed, a few chairs, cabinets filled with various medical tools. And there, sitting-not laying, but sitting straight up on the edge of the bed with his feet firmly planted on the ground-was Aizawa.

"Dad!" Eri shouted running over to him. He only had time to look up before she had flung herself at him, her arms wrapping around him tightly. His were at his side, but he carefully snaked them up behind her back so as to return the embrace.

"I was so worried," she continued, pulling away to study his face. He seemed tired, but no more tired than usual. A stark white bandage plastered to his forehead stood out from underneath his pitch black hair and when she glanced down, she saw that his hand was also bandaged.

"I'm alright, Eri," Aizawa confirmed, placing the bandaged hand atop her head. "Just a few minor injuries, but nothing to worry about." He glanced past her to where All Might was standing, leaning in the doorway. "Thanks for getting her. I didn't want her to get home to an empty apartment."

All Might waved his hand dismissively. "Of course," he replied. "Any time. So, they let you go yet?"

Aizawa nodded, pulling his hand towards him to fiddle with the bandages. "I've been cleared. You'll take us home?"

"Absolutely. Let's get going."

Aizawa and Eri hopped off the bed and started for the door. Eri couldn't help but stay close to Aizawa. She felt like a little kid again, but she couldn't help herself from slipping her hand into his. Her heart was still racing from how fast she went from despair to utter joy at finding out her dad was alright. When she walked into the room, she had no idea what to expect, and she struggled to control her breathing now that she was sure he'd be okay.

They were in the car and driving back to UA before anyone spoke again. Eri had calmed and was playing with the hem of her skirt, waiting for someone to tell her what had caused her dad's injuries, but she slowly came to the realization that no one was going to volunteer the information.

"What happened?" she asked, looking forward to where her dad sat in the passenger's seat.

"There was an incident downtown," Aizawa replied.

"But with who?" Eri questioned, frowning at the short response. "What happened? Did a villain attack the city in general, or a specific hero? Did you get called in? Was Deku there?"

"Eri." Aizawa's tone held a hint of warning which only caused the girl to furrow her brows in frustration. Getting information out of her father was like talking to a wall. He was especially guarded when it came to any hero business, choosing to keep his daughter in the dark about the inner workings of hero and villain organizations. She didn't even know much about where she had been found. Aizawa didn't speak about the mission that had saved her and no one else had ever come forward with information about it. Not even Deku and Mirio who had been there too gave her anything to go off of. Any questions were quickly deflected and her attention diverted to something else.

"The important thing is that your dad's alright," All Might offered. Eri just stared out the window, her arms folded across her chest. He was trying to be helpful, she knew, and while she did care that her dad was okay, she wanted to know more.

However, information was not going to come in that car ride. Before she knew it, they were back in their apartment in the 1-A dorms. Eri lingered in the living room, as Aizawa went to his room to change. When he came back out, he had a towel in his hand and was picking at the bandage on his forehead.

"Dinner isn't over yet," he said, noting how Eri leaned against the back of the couch restlessly. She hadn't even set her backpack down since getting home. "Go eat."

"What about you?" Eri asked, taking a hesitant step forward, as though she wasn't sure if she really wanted to leave.

"I had a little something at the hospital," he told her. "But I'm sure you haven't eaten since lunch, so go on before the dining hall closes. I've got nothing in the apartment and Recovery Girl will kill me if she finds out I let you eat Poptarts for dinner again."

Eri thought about protesting, though she wasn't entirely sure why she felt the need to question him further. She was hungry and her dad was alright and she had been waiting for that miso ramen all day long. But, she still wasn't satisfied with the answers in the car on the way home and a part of her wondered if he'd tell her more if she stuck around.

However, Aizawa was already on his way to the bathroom and Eri knew dinner was not up for debate. She set down her backpack and dug up her wallet clutch with her ID before slipping out of the apartment and heading towards the dining hall.

The cafeteria was almost completely cleared out, but food was still being served. Eri got her ramen and started walking towards an empty table. Normally, she and her dad would eat together, sometimes with another teacher. But, it was late enough into dinner service that the teachers had all finished and only a few students lingered.

One such group of students were huddled at a table near the one Eri was aiming for. She couldn't help but overhear them excitedly talking about whatever was on one of their phones. The students weren't being particularly quiet, but Eri didn't pay much attention until the mention of her dad drew her towards the table.

"Did you _see_ Aizawa-sensei?" One boy with lime green hair asked.

"He was amazing! I didn't know he could fight up close so well," replied a girl with pale skin and extremely pointy ears. Eri recognized these students as second years. They had been in her father's class just a year before, but she couldn't quite remember any of their names.

"What are you watching?" Eri was surprised at the sound of her own voice, her curiosity getting the better of her as she took another step towards the group. Everyone looked up at her, a little startled, though their expressions quickly turned to kindness. Eri was well-known and well-loved at UA. While she didn't always remember everyone's names, they all knew her as Aizawa-sensei's daughter.

"The fight from today," replied a pretty girl with long violet hair and pale blue skin. "Did you see it?" Eri shook her head and wordlessly, the girl waved her over. She shifted over on the table's bench so that Eri could sit down and the boy holding the phone replayed the video.

It was shaky, grainy footage, but Eri could clearly make out a levitating villain that emitted a dangerous gas and a few heroes circling around it. She noticed a shock of pink and wondered if Uravity was there, though the camera shifted away before she could get a good look at the hero woman's face. Then there was a flash of green and the camera remained fixated on a hero Eri would recognize anywhere. Deku was jumping all around the villain, but his main focus was on getting the civilians out of the way. She watched as he carried a good number of people to safety before doubling back to face the villain head-on.

The majority of the video played out like any other hero-vs-villain fight she'd seen. Deku was the main star, though other heros backed him up when needed. But, when Deku was punched away by a particularly strong hit, it looked like the fight was over.

That's when the camera jerked to the right and she saw him. Her dad was in the middle of the action, using his cloth wraps to fling himself through the air. Leveraging the awnings of the buildings around him, Eraserhead was able to pull himself close enough to villain to attempt to use his Quirk.

He got close enough to the villian to erase his Quirk, and the man fell a few feet to the ground. This didn't deter him. Instead, he continued to fight as Eraserhead struggled to keep his eyes open and focused on the villian while also attempting to restrain him.

"So cool," quipped one of the boys. "I want him to show us those moves next class."

"Yeah," replied the kid he was sitting next to. "I think he's been holding out on us!"

The students talked in hushed voices about the moves Eraserhead was making, but Eri could only keep her focus on the screen. She'd never seen her dad fight like this before. He didn't usually get involved in fights, at least not televised ones, and he certainly tried to keep her from watching the battles that would pop up on the news weekly. She'd only ever really seen him spar with his students.

One particularly painful looking punch landed on the side of her dad's face, pushing him back through the air a few feet. This of course broke contact with the villian, who was able to resume using his gas Quirk. The camera panned over to him for an instant, but the attention of the person with the phone was quickly captured by Deku jumping back onto the screen.

The fight was over soon after that. The camera never panned back to Eraserhead, instead focusing on how Deku was able to knock the villain out. Cops gathered to collect him and the video stopped.

"Man, I hope Aizawa-sensei is alright," said the girl with the pale blue skin. Pausing for a moment, she looked over at Eri next to her, who was still fixated on the now blank phone screen. "Hey, he's your dad, right? Is he okay?"

Eri snapped back into reality, finding herself nodding her head at the question she barely registered. "Yeah, he's alright," she told the group who were now all looking at her.

"Man, and he's so tough!" a student exclaimed. "Get knocked around by that guy and no biggie, he'll be in class tomorrow anyway."

"Well you've heard about the USJ incident, right?" said another. "I heard he was back teaching class _that day_."

"There's no way that happened," the girl next to Eri said with a disbelieving frown. "I mean, he still has to be human. I heard it was quick, though."

"Well, my sister is friends with a girl who went to primary school with Creati and she said-"

Eri tuned everyone out at that point, focusing instead on finishing her ramen. She had been so focused on watching the fight on the phone that her dinner had gotten a little cold. That was alright. It still tasted delicious, though not as satisfying as she imagined it would be. Perhaps that was due in part to all the thoughts racing through her mind.

It had never really occured to Eri that her father's job would be dangerous. Sure, he was a hero, but he'd only recently started to come into mainstream culture. It was hard to ignore the media hype of a mysterious, quiet hero who attended to the famous 1-A class of a few years ago. And, everyone loved the softer side of him that had taken a young girl under his wing without even being asked.

Eri knew her father tried to keep her out of the media as much as possible. It was difficult in the first few months she had lived with him, but her story soon faded and now she was as normal as any other girl her age. She didn't even remember the looks her teachers would give at seeing her name called or the scattered reporters that surrounded Aizawa when he went to pick her up from school. Those things all died down with time, especially as the legendary 1-A class moved to 2-A and then 3-A and then fully into the public spear.

But, Aizawa had always straddled the public and the private. He was visible enough to be recognized, yet reserved to the point of not normally being pestered on the street. He'd trained Eri how to control her own Quirk and then turned her loose on the world in order to become a normal girl.

 _Normal_. That's what she was supposed to be. Even with the horn on the side of her head, she was no more strange looking than anyone else with visible quirks. Half of her school had either skin or hair of vibrant colors. With the way Quirks had mutated human DNA, Eri was one of the more plain looking kids at her school.

Eri cleaned up and brought her tray to the back to be washed. She didn't say goodbye to the students she had eaten dinner with. They were too busy arguing over fantasy match-ups of their teachers and Eri didn't want to think about her dad being in another fight.

The sun was just setting over campus when Eri made her way back to the dorm. It was getting pretty cool and Eri shoved her hands into the pockets of her coat. She hadn't brought her gloves with her, something she often forgot at home anyway. The footage she had watched played in her mind along with a thousand rotating thoughts. She wasn't even really sure _what_ she really felt, just that she was confused and didn't know what to do with this information.

The apartment was quiet when she walked in, but the light in the living room was still on. She could just make out the end of Aizawa's feet sticking out over the edge of the armrest. As Eri moved closer, she peered over the back of the couch and found her father fast asleep on his back, his hair tied back but still wet from the shower.

Eri had quite a few questions and a lot of things she wanted to talk to her dad about, but she was glad to see him asleep. He always complained about not getting enough rest, so she hoped he'd get a few hours in before he inevitably woke up and did some grading at three in the morning.

Eri grabbed a blanket from the other chair and pulled it over Aizawa before retiring to her own room for the night. As she laid down in bed, the video still played on repeat in her head, but she realized she felt a bit of comfort. At least she knew someone like her dad was out there protecting not just her, but everyone else as well.

* * *

 _I can't get over how much I love Eri and Aizawa's little family, so I decided to write a fic that centers around her as she gets older! I'm super excited for this one and pretty far in!_

 _I'll add more tags as they're necessary and I haven't finished writing this yet. For those caught up with the manga, keep in mind Eri's backstory and know I won't go further in this story than the manga does. For those not caught up, I recommend familiarizing yourself with Eri's backstory. I will also add trigger warnings in AN's at the top of appropriate chapters._

 _I went back and forth about the "Uncle" vs "Mister" vs Just All Might thing, but I figure being the mentor of one of Eri's closest friends and the friend of her dad would warrant an Uncle label. Melissa will just have to share!_


	2. The Quirkless Man

Eri chewed thoughtfully on the end of her pencil as she read through the page in her math book for the second time. The chapter on proofs had been the most difficult for her all semester and now it was back to haunt her once more.

She was seated at the kitchen table next to Aizawa who was grading his students' papers. Both preferred to work with no music or noise to interrupt them. This scene had played out countless times over the years. It began with Eri wanting to color next to Aizawa when he worked, sometimes even pretending to be grading papers of her own. Then, when she got into school, she would do her homework there, breaking the silence only sometimes to ask her dad some questions. Now it was a prime study spot and the essays Aizawa's students wrote were good for little distractions every now and then.

Eri's eyes had wandered to the stack of papers to her left and she had moved from shapes and proofs to reading the front page of the B+ essay. It was on the biological history of Quirks, a topic she was only vaguely familiar with. Every year, her dad covered this chapter and she read bits and pieces of the essays his students produced, but she didn't really know much about the subject. And, judging by some of the other grades this year, it didn't seem his students did either.

The chiming of a ringtone broke the silence, though it was distant and coming from Eri's room. Eri's head snapped up immediately and she shifted to slide out of her chair, but she felt her father's eyes on her.

"I finished three chapters already!" she defended against the unspoken question. Aizawa just shrugged and returned to an essay.

Eri hopped off the chair and went to her room to grab her phone, a cute pink flip phone with a purple llama charm hanging off of it.

"Hello?" she answered, not bothering to check the caller ID. At least it was a chance to get away from all the work.

"Eri! How are you? Happy almost-birthday!"

Eri's face brightened and she hopped onto her bed. "Mirio?" she asked excitedly, though she already knew the answer. "I haven't heard from you in ages! How are you?"

"Good," her friend confirmed. "It's been busy at the station lately, but I wanted to check in since your birthday is coming up. And I wanted to know if you wanted to go to the mall tomorrow. If my sister is to be believed, I'm terrible at presents, so I could use some help."

"You don't have to get me anything," Eri said politely. "I'm just excited to see you! It's been so long!" She paused, images of rulers and notebooks passing through her mind. "I have to ask my dad, though. I have finals next week."

"I'm sure he can spare an afternoon," Mirio chirped, ever the optimist. "Besides, I bet you've been studying your butt off."

"You have no idea," Eri sighed. "I think proofs are going to be the death of me."

"Well, keep studying and ask Aizawa-sensei if I can take you for a bit. I'll pick you up at three unless I hear otherwise. And if we can't go to the mall, I'll figure something out and stop by anyway."

"Okay! See you tomorrow! Bye!"

The line went dead and Eri pulled the phone from her ear, grinning widely at the conversation that had just transpired. Even after all those years, she had kept close to Mirio. He had been one of the people to save her, along with Deku and Aizawa and all the heroes who raided the building she was being kept in. But, it was Mirio who carried her out when her legs were too weak to move and Mirio who lost his Quirk defending her.

Even though she had been so young, Eri still felt a pang of guilt when she thought about the loss of Mirio's Quirk. Although she didn't know all the details of her rescue, she did know that he had lost his powers while protecting her. Her father, Deku, and Mirio had all told her not to feel guilty. Mirio especially insisted that her safety was worth the price, but Eri didn't quite buy it. Quicks were special and someone as powerful as Mirio was losing theirs was a tragedy.

But, one of the best things about Mirio was that he never ever brought it up. After graduating from UA, he'd gone to university and became a police officer. He might not have a Quirk anymore, but he was incredibly strong from all the training he'd done and he was a perfect fit for the force in a large city not far from where Eri lived. He seemed happy, though, and whenever he would visit and would stay up late with Aizawa, Eri often heard them talking about ways to get his Quirk back. He always finished off the conversation saying he was in no rush, but there was also a pang of longing in his tone. Eri didn't know how he was ever going to get his Quirk back, but it was one of Aizawa's many side projects.

"Hey, Dad," Eri called as she exited her room and made her way back to the small kitchen. Aizawa glanced up, one eyebrow raised at his daughter as she approached. "Mirio wants to know if he can take me to the mall-and I _know_ finals are coming up but I've been studying so hard and it's for my birthday." She finished off her spiel with her best adorable smile, hoping her dad would let her go.

There was a long pause that really took less than a minute, but Eri felt like he was contemplating the question for hours. Finally, Aizawa shrugged, picked up the stack of papers to shuffle them before setting them back down again. "Sure."

Eri beamed and ran over, hugging her dad tightly. "Really? Thank you, thank you, _thank you!_ "

"Just make sure you do some studying tomorrow before he picks you up," Aizawa replied, placing a hand on her head.

"I will, I promise!" Eri let him go and grabbed her books off the table. "I'm gonna finish this chapter in my room and text Mirio. Thanks so much, dad!"

She skipped off and Aizawa watched her until the bedroom door was shut and he was alone in the kitchen once more. As he turned back to his grading, he felt like he was doing the right thing. After all, the week hadn't been the easiest and he knew she was struggling with school. She deserved something like this for her birthday.

Besides, he hadn't had the chance to catch up with his old student as of late and he had a few ideas on that project of theirs.

* * *

The next day, her dad was absolutely sure to check that she had been studying, which she did diligently. Eri wasn't particularly thrilled to spend most of her day relearning English tenses and historic battles, but she would do anything to spend time with Mirio. She looked up to him just as much as she looked up to Deku and she hardly got to see either of them because of their various hero activities.

Eri stood in front of her floor length mirror in her room, expertly attempting to tie her thick white hair up in a tight, high ponytail. She had her hair in one hand, her brush in another, and the scrunchie set between her teeth. Her hair was starting to get a bit long, so she'd need to get it cut soon, but for now, she was still able to easily gather all her hair up.

When she was finished, most of her hair was up in a sleek ponytail while some shorter strands swept her cheeks. She grabbed a long purple sweater and black skirt with some thick black leggings. It was colder now, but maybe the leggings weren't needed. Still, she felt the need to cover up the many raised scars that littered her legs. Her arms weren't as bad off and she didn't mind wearing short sleeves, but she preferred to hide the scars on her legs when possible. It wasn't that they reminded her of anything or that she was even necessarily self-conscious about them. In a world of interesting looking people, Eri in no way stood out. But there was something about the scars that caused a sinking feeling to bloom in the pit of her stomach when she focused on them for too long

No sooner had she pulled her sweater over her head was there a knock at the front door. She sped to get her skirt and leggings on while she heard her father call, "Eri. Mirio's here."

"I'm coming!" the girl shouted back as she all but fell through her door and hobbled into the living room. Once she regained her footing, she ran for Mirio who was standing in the doorway with his usual bright smile resting on his lips.

Mirio was well built and very sturdy so when Eri came flying into him for a tackle-hug, he didn't even have to take a step back to handle her. He gave her a big hug back and twirled her around before setting her firmly back down on the ground.

"Hey, kid!" Mirio greeted, sticking his hands back into the pockets of his jeans. "You've gotten so big! I can't believe you're going to be twelve already."

"Time certainly does fly," Aizawa commented. He was standing nearby but in the open kitchen, leaning against the end of the counter.

"I'm not _that_ old," Eri said with an eye roll. Every time she saw extended family or old UA teachers or students, she got the same spiel about how big she had gotten and how much time had passed. The last time she saw Ms. Joke after not meeting up for quite a few years, she didn't hear the end of it all evening. Mirio was a bit different, though. She could never find him annoying.

Aizawa and Mirio chatted lightly for a few minutes while Eri went back to her room to grab her purse and phone. When she came back, Mirio was zipping up his coat once more.

"Be home by five," Aizawa told them as he handed Eri her coat. "I got a dining hall pass for you, Mirio, so you can eat with us if you like."

"That would be fantastic!" Mirio grinned, ever enthusiastic about any kindness offered to him. "I haven't had Lunch Rush's, uh, dinner rush in ages."

The two stepped out of the apartment and soon found themselves making their way down the city streets. It was cold and there were tired flurries in the air, but nothing that would stick on the ground. Eri had remembered her mittens, but her hands were still stuffed tightly in her pockets.

"So, how is school going?" Mirio asked.

Eri shrugged. "I'm just glad vacation is coming up," she said. "I can't wait to be done with finals."

"I remember those years," Mirio smiled fondly as they turned down the sidewalk that would take them to the front entrance of the mall. "You're going to miss them when they're gone. I'd love to be back in school!"

Eri looked at him incredulously, waiting for the punchline. She couldn't believe anyone would want to be back in school, but, Mirio looked as serious as ever and when he noticed her staring at him, he just smiled wider. They quickly reached the front entrance of the mall and he held the door open for her.

They spent about an hour just wandering around. Eri gravitated to the pet store and they spent some time looking at the dogs and cats. She told Mirio about how much she wanted to get a pet, but that the UA rules hadn't changed. At the next store they stopped in, he surprised her with a cat stuffed animal. Even though she would normally be of the opinion that she was too old for stuffed animals, she was thrilled.

At another little shop, Mirio let Eri pick out a pretty silver necklace with a key on the end of it. Eri loved the way the miniature false diamonds that lined the charm glittered when the light hit them just right. Once the transaction was processed, she immediately had Mirio help her put it on and she knew she wouldn't be quick to take it off again.

They ended up at the food court with two sodas and two freshly baked cookies. Mirio wouldn't let her ruin her dinner, but he also couldn't pass up a birthday treat. He and Eri had a special bond ever since that fateful night seven years prior. Along with Midoriya, he was one of her first friends and one of the first people she ever trusted. And, he in turn saw her as a little sister.

"Hey, Mirio?" Eri started, red eyes peering past her soda straw to meet his own. "Did you see that fight the other day? The one with the gas man and Deku?" Mirio frowned, his eyebrows scrunching together as he tried to think about the battle Eri was thinking about. "And dad?" Eri added.

The two words knocked the wind out of Mirio. Immediately, he knew what she was talking about. "You saw that?" he asked.

Eri nodded looking down and away at the tiled ground as she played with the edges of her cup lid. "Yeah. A few kids were watching it in the dining hall the other day."

Silence fell over the table for a moment. Eri didn't know where she was going with that first question and Mirio didn't know if he should continue with the topic or change the subject. Finally, Eri spoke up again.

"I know he's a hero," she said. "I mean, I was there two years ago when he got real hurt. But, I don't know. I never really thought of him like that before. I've never _seen_ it. He's not in a lot of battles, at least not ones that get shown on national news. He hates cameras."

"The important thing is that your dad's alright," Mirio said gently, unsure of what the right response would be. "And, for what it's worth, he's strong. He knows what he's doing."

"I know that," Eri sighed.

"But it doesn't make it easier?" Mirio guessed.

Eri shook her head. She hesitated for a moment before asking, "Mirio? Do you still want to be a hero?"

Immediately, Mirio nodded. "Yeah. I mean, if you ask me, what I do is pretty darn close to being a hero, but one day I want to get my license."

"And get your Quirk back?"

Mirio pursed his lips and rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. "Yeah. One day."

"Why?"

"Well, it was the Quirk I was born with. I'd like to get it-"

"No," Eri interrupted, serious eyes leveling a striking gaze. "Why do you want to be a hero?"

Mirio sat back in his seat, pushing back so the chair rose up on his back legs for a moment. He stared at Eri who wasn't backing down from her own intense look. When did this girl go from being an innocent child to a young adult with hard to answer questions?

He knew Aizawa tried to keep her away from all of this hero business, as silly as that seemed living inside of a school that was literally in the business of churning out pro-heroes. He respected that decision, though. In fact, he even agreed, given Eri's history. But now, the shallow answers and weak explanations weren't doing it for her anymore and he didn't blame her either. He'd be the same way in her shoes.

"I want to help people," Mirio told her in a much lower voice than his normal, light tone. "But it's more than that. I want to rescue people. To save them from harm, from situations they didn't ask to be in. There are some things, Eri, that are bigger than one person. Life is one of them. And if you have a Quirk and can do something with it, you should use it for the greater good. I can't do the whole Quirk thing anymore, but I'm still strong and I can still help, so I do."

Eri nodded along, listening to every word. She understood. His motivations were similar to anyone else's who wanted to become a hero. She'd heard the same thing from kids in her own class, kids she knew were destined to walk the halls of UA someday.

"What about me? Eri asked. "Could I be a hero?"

This was not the first time she had ever asked that question. She'd asked her dad, her friends, her teachers. They'd all give her an easy answer of, "Of course, honey." The same answer they gave to each and every child who asked that question.

But, Mirio was different. He just looked back at her and simply asked, "Do you want to be one?"

This gave her great pause. She'd never gotten this response before. Before she knew it she was shaking her head and shrugging at the same time. "I don't know," Eri admitted. "I don't know."

Mirio noted the hint of aggravation in her voice. "You don't have to make any decisions any time soon," he said gently. "You have plenty of time."

"I only have three years before high school," Eri countered. "And if I want to do this, I have to start training. But I don't know what to do or how to train or if I even want to. I just feel like I should because I have this Quirk that Dad says is so powerful, but I don't really know how to _use_ it. I just know how _not_ use it." She ran a hand through her bangs. "I don't know what I want or what I should do. I feel like whatever I decide will be wrong."

"Eri, as long as you follow your heart, you can't be wrong," Mirio replied, grinning at her. "And you _do_ have plenty of time to figure out what your heart wants." He dug into his pocket and quickly checked the time on his phone. "Now we better get back to your place or else we're going to miss dinner."

And with that, they started for home. Eri asked him a few more questions about hero work and the classes he took at UA. She expressed that she wanted to learn how to use her Quirk, but never knew how to broach the subject with her dad or anyone else for that matter. There was something that seemed forbidden about it. Like her power was somehow wrong. Mirio assured her it certainly wasn't, it was just different, and not everyone knew what to do with different. But, that if she wanted to be a hero, there was no reason she couldn't.

When they returned to campus, Eri, Mirio, and Aizawa went to the dining hall to eat. It was a strange experience for Mirio now that the kids were so much younger than him, they didn't recognize him from the Sports Festival seven years prior.

During dinner, Eri was contemplative and quiet. She tried to partake in the conversation, but it lagged a little with her not speaking much and her dad not being much of a talker. Mirio, however, went on about his job and the city he now worked in.

Once back at the apartment, Eri curled up on the couch to the right of Mirio with Aizawa on the chair opposite him, while the two men chatted amicably. She couldn't help but turn over what Mirio had said again and again. She _could_ become a hero. That is if she wanted to be one. And, if she could learn how to use her Quirk.

She vaguely remembered the days she and Aizawa would spend in that first year just working on how to keep her Quirk under control. Her horn, which at one point at protruded inches from her face, became almost like a thick bump on her forehead. Since she'd gotten older, it stuck out maybe an inch, just enough to touch her bangs depending on how she styled them. Aizawa always told her that the horn would get bigger the more she used her power. She hadn't used it in years. At this point, she barely knew how to.

How could she bring up to her Dad that she wanted to use her Quirk again? That she at least wanted to give it a shot? Her Quirk was something they didn't talk about. She didn't know how to bring it up and he never offered much information.

"Eri?" Her father's voice broke her from her thoughts and she glanced up at him. "Getting tired?"

She was initially going to shake her head no, because she really wasn't very tired. But the mention of being tired and the mental image of her pillows caused her to suddenly really want to go to bed. "Yeah, kinda," she replied.

"Go on to bed," Aizawa told her, waving towards her bedroom. "You won't miss too much."

"Okay." Eri stood and went over to the other end of the couch to give Mirio a hug. "Thanks so much for my birthday presents. I had a great time today."

"Glad you could come, kid," Mirio replied, returning the hug with a tight squeeze. "Good luck on your finals."

"Thanks," Eri grinned, spinning around to give her dad a hug goodnight.

In another minute, her bedroom door had shut. In two, her light was off. Mirio sunk back into the couch and smiled politely over at Aizawa.

"She's really gotten big. I can't believe she's gonna be twelve!"

Aizawa nodded, looking at her door for another moment. "She's a good kid."

A moment of comfortable silence passed between the two friends before Mirio spoke again. When he did, he shifted so he was on the edge of the couch with his knees together, bent over and looking at Aizawa expectantly. "So," he started. "You said you had an idea?"

Aizawa glanced back at him with a nod, folding his arms across his chest thoughtfully. "It's not a new idea," he said. "I just wonder if it would be possible now. But, it involves a few more variables and we might not be able to get everything in place. It's also a little dangerous."

Mirio laughed. "Since when has a UA alum ever balked at dangerous?" he asked. "So what are you thinking?"

Aizawa paused for a long moment before finally responding. "Eri. I wonder if we can use her Quirk."

Mirio immediately frowned. "You said that might not work since the drug I was hit with already reverted me to a pre-Quirk state," he said. "Or that I could disappear completely."

"I know," Aizawa nodded. "But I did some research. I suggested the idea to some of the teachers here and we spent a few months taking another looking at the evidence from the building we found Eri in. There are a few surviving remnants of the drug they used to destroy Quirks and they found that heavy modification was done to adjust the drugs to only remove quirks. Instead of causing you to disappear altogether it just severed your Quirk's abilities from connecting. Think of it like a power cord. The plug is still there, but it's disconnected. I'm thinking we can get Eri to revert you to your previous state of _having_ a Quirk. As far as the possibility of you disappearing, well. That's still a possible outcome."

Mirio nodded slowly, taking in his old teacher's words. The idea of disappearing was certainly not appealing, but he wanted desperately to get his Quirk back. For almost his whole life, that Quirk had been part of him. Losing it was like losing the ability to walk.

"Do you think she'd be capable of doing it?" Mirio asked, remembering the conversation he'd had with the girl earlier in the day.

"I don't know," Aizawa replied honestly. "And that's what I meant by other variables. If Eri doesn't want to, then we won't make her. I also trained her for years to shut down her Quirk. I don't know if we'd be able to get her to a point where she'd be able to make good use of it. It's powerful and I worry about that sort of power in the hands of one so young."

"It could make her dangerous," Mirio suggested, but Aizawa immediately shook her head.

"No, I'm not worried about her. It's the rest of the world I'm worried about. I've never seen a child with that sort of Quirk before, even in all my years of teaching some of the most gifted children in the country. While she was only one part of the overall plan, I know she as important to The League. I've been able to keep her safe so far but I worry about exposing her power to the world. If word got out… Well, I certainly don't want to think about that."

"Do you think they would come for her again?" Mirio asked.

Aizawa's silence said everything.

The two chatted for just a little while longer, moving onto much lighter conversation. However, it was clear from the troubled tone in their voices that they weren't able to shake the eerie feeling brought on by their talk. Soon, Mirio said his goodbyes and grabbed his coat. They made plans to meet up sometime later in the month and discuss this further.

At the sound of the closing front door, Eri stood up from her spot against the wall and crawled into bed.


	3. A Friend Named Deku

_Although I think it would be a better solution to talk these differences out rather than kill oneself, it is clear Romeo and Juliet is still a relevant story. One can learn a lot from the Capulets and Montagues, though maybe more in the form of a warning about the blindness feverish love causes._

Eri flipped her pencil around in her fingers and briefly looked over her essay. Her last final in Literature was complete. She crossed out a few repetitive phrases and fixed a misspelling before setting the pencil down for good. A wave of relief washed over here. It was over. No more finals, no more tests, no more school for two whole weeks. And then when she got back in January, she'd be learning new subjects. And, yes, there would be finals come April, but that was so far away, Eri didn't particularly care. Right now, in this moment, she was done.

She tossed her pencil into her backpack and zipped it shut before standing with her bag over her shoulder and her packet in the other hand. Quietly, so as to not disturb the rest of the working students, she made her way to the front where her waiting teacher had a stack of finished papers. With a small bow and a little wave, Eri exited the classroom and let out a long sigh of relief.

The semester was over. Her birthday was tomorrow and Winter Break was just beginning. Everything was going great.

Except, she didn't feel that way.

Ever since witnessing the fight her dad had been in and especially since the conversation she'd overheard between him and Mirio, Eri had this sinking feeling in her stomach that she couldn't shake. As much as she did want more than anything to help Mirio get his Quirk back, she was scared of this power that lurked inside her. It was a power she didn't understand and had even grown to resent at times. While every other kid got to enjoy their Quirk, she hid hers away.

And now, it seemed, she would need to learn to use and control it.

That was something she should have anticipated, given that she was considering training for UA's hero program. Of course, she would need to learn how to use her Quirk in order to get in. But the how's had seemed so abstract when she was just thinking about her high school career, yet now they were very, very real.

Her dad didn't know she'd overheard that conversation with Mirio and he hadn't brought anything up regarding him or his Quirk. Eri chalked that up to the end of the semester. UA's last day was the same as her's and her father had been on the other side of the exams. Rather than study and prepare, he had created and would soon grade them. It was a busy time, but Eri couldn't help but spend every day wondering if he would finally talk to her about it.

Eri walked through the entrance of the school and started down the sidewalk towards home. Yuki had another final, so Eri headed home alone. It had warmed up slightly and Eri had forgotten her gloves in her rush to get out the door that morning, so she shoved her hands in her pockets.

It was around noon and she passed a few business people in crisp drab suits bustling out of favorite lunch spots along the main drag. A few students from various schools milled around with bright smiles on their faces. Eri assumed they were also done with finals for the year.

Before long, she turned down the street leading to UA's main campus. She flashed her ID to be let inside and made her way to the dorms.

Campus was already pretty empty. Some classes had finished their finals the day before and other students were done early that morning. The students she did see walking around were carrying bags and suitcases, often accompanied by their parents who had come to pick them up.

"Eri!"

She gasped at the sound of her name. She knew that voice as well as she knew her own. Whirling around, she faced a mop of green hair and bright excited eyes.

"Deku!" Eri screeched, throwing her backpack on the ground in favor of running into her friend's outstretched arms. Deku grabbed her with ease and lifted her feet off the ground so he could spin her around a few times.

When she felt herself firmly back on the ground, Eri pulled away, though she continued to bounce excitedly on the tips of her feet. "What are you doing here?" she asked. "It's Winter Break and I know you're super busy!"

"I came to talk to a few students who we're recruiting for the agency I'm with," Izuku explained, bending down to pick up the girl's bag. He slung it over his own shoulder and they started to walk towards Eri's dorm. "And I know your birthday's tomorrow so I wanted to stop by and see you! I wasn't sure if you were home and I don't have a ton of time, but I figured I'd head towards the 1-A dorm and see. I can't believe you're going to be twelve!"

"Mirio said the same thing," Eri replied with a roll of her eyes.

"Mirio?" Izuku asked. "Did I miss him?"

"Yeah, he stopped by a few days ago." That was all the explanation Eri gave. She didn't want to go into more detail with the memory of the conversation she'd heard still burning in her mind.

"Oh darn. We really need to learn to coordinate." Izuku laughed heartily and Eri's smile returned.

She saw Izuku even less than she saw Mirio even though he actually lived closer. But, unlike Mirio, he was a hero in training. After graduating, he started working for Bubble Girl at the Nighteye Agency. He was her sidekick, though he quickly gained notoriety for his heroics and was quite famous in his own right. If you bought into what the media said, Deku would become the number one hero before long and was on track to be the world's new Symbol of Peace. Of course, he was only twenty-one, and even the most optimistic commentators speculated it would be years before that happened.

"So, how's school going?" Izuku asked, adjusting the backpack on his shoulder.

"Done!" Eri cheered. "I just finished my last final. One more semester and I'll be in middle school!" Izuku nodded and Eri hesitated before adding, "I saw you the other day. On TV fighting that villain." With all that was on her mind, she figured she'd just jump right into the one thing she'd wanted to speak with Izuku about, but hadn't yet had the chance.

"Oh, you did?" Izuku asked, though he clearly didn't know which fight Eri was referring to.

"Yeah." She nodded. "The one where Dad got hurt."

Izuku sucked in a breath, the memory of that battle coming back to him. "Your dad really helped us out," he told her. "I don't know if we could have taken that guy without him."

"I'd never seen him fight like that before," Eri said, staring straight ahead of her. "I mean, I know hero work can be dangerous, but I never really _saw_ it before."

"Your dad's a great hero," Izuku told her seriously. "And he's strong and one of the best fighters I know. I mean, he taught me after all."

"Mirio said the same thing," Eri sighed, the response now becoming too tired for her. "I know he's strong and a good fighter, but it's scary. I don't want him, or you or Mirio, to get hurt."

Izuku placed a gentle hand on her shoulder as they continued to walk along the concrete path through campus. "I know," he said. "But it comes with the job. Thankfully, we're all trained. Your dad, me, even Mirio, we're all trained for stuff like this."

Eri just nodded, pursing her lips and falling silent. After a few minutes of walking in silence, she said, "Can I tell you something and you won't tell my dad?"

Izuku hesitated. Even as an adult, Aizawa was scary and he didn't want to make a promise to Eri he would end up breaking. However, when he looked down and saw her intense red eyes staring back at him pleadingly, he couldn't say no.

"Sure, kiddo," he whispered.

"Dad wants me to use my Quirk," she said. "To get Mirio's Quirk back. And I don't know what to do. I heard him talking about it, but he doesn't know I know. I'm just scared because I haven't used my Quirk in years and if I do something wrong or if I'm not strong enough, I could make him disappear. I _want_ to learn how to use my Quirk, but I know how dangerous it is."

Izuku had hoped in the back of his mind that this would be about a crush or a bad grade. He knew Eri was far too serious to find either of those to be secrets too great to keep from her dad, but he'd really wanted it to be simple. This was about as far from simple as it could get.

Eri's Quirk was a… difficult topic for him. He respected the hell out of his former teacher, but as someone who'd grown up without a Quirk, he wasn't sure if he agreed with training her never to use it. Still, he understood Aizawa's reasoning. He had to teach her not to use it in order to control such a power.

"I'm sorry," Eri said once she realized she'd silenced her friend.

"No, it's okay," Izuku quickly replied, shaking his head. "It's just… wow that's a lot, huh? It can't be a great position to be in, but you know your dad would never make you do something you don't want to, right? I mean, with something like this, he'll want you on board one-hundred percent. So, what do _you_ want to do?"

Eri just shrugged. "I know know. I'm scared I'll mess up, but I really want to learn to use my Quirk. I mean, it's a part of me, right? So why should I have to hide it away? I can learn to control it."

"Then tell him that," Izuku smiled. "Your dad loves you more than anything and wants the best for you. He's also an amazing teacher. If anyone can help you learn to control your Quirk, it's him."

The pair stepped onto the front porch of the 1-A dorm. Izuku couldn't help but stare at the place, memories of his years at UA filling his mind's eye. He handed Eri her backpack and stepped back down the stairs.

"Hey, there's a card for you in your mailbox," he told her. "I need to go see All Might before it gets too late. I gotta get back soon for evening patrol." Eri frowned, but she knew how busy Izuku was. At least she'd gotten to talk to him and he'd really helped settle her mind.

"Alright." She stepped forward and gave him a hug, which he quickly returned.

"I'm sorry I have to go so soon. But hey, you have my number, right? If you need someone, I'm always here for you, got it? You need anything, give me a call." That made Eri smile again and she nodded.

"Thanks, Deku."

Izuku reached out and ruffled her hair gently. "Be good. And happy birthday!" With that, he turned around and headed for the main campus. Eri stood and watched him go before she grabbed her bag and walked inside.

There was indeed a card for her in the mailbox, wrapped up in a big purple envelope. When she keyed into the apartment, she found herself home alone. In fact, she was pretty sure she was the only one in the entire dorm. If she remembered her father's schedule correctly, class 1-A was probably completing their final Quirk Aptitude Test of the semester.

Eri walked into her bedroom and set her backpack down next to her desk. With the card still in her hand, she flung herself onto the bed, landing on her back with her head on her many pillows. Her name was printed neatly on the back of the envelope. He'd obviously taken care to write each character of her name out in the best writing he could manage. Carefully, she slipped her thumb under the seal and opened the envelope, trying not to tear the paper.

Inside was a beautiful card with purple butterflies that matched the color of the envelope. Eri's eyes flickered over the cliche birthday greeting on the front and opened the card to read the rest. Inside the fold, a plastic card slipped out and Eri grabbed it off of her chest. It was a gift card to a clothing store in the mall she remembered telling Izuku she liked. She smiled widely at both the gesture and the amount of money he had put on the card.

 _Happy Birthday and congrats on finishing finals! I hope this is enough to get a nice outfit!_

 _-Deku_

Eri sat up and set the card on her nightstand. Picking her purse off the ground, she slipped the gift card into her wallet and grabbed her cellphone.

 _Thanks so much for the gift card!_ She typed out to Izuku. _That's my favorite store in the world and I can't wait to go shopping!_

She pressed send and set her phone on her nightstand. Leaning back against the pillows, she stared at her ceiling, the conversation with her superhero friend playing in her mind. He was right, of course. Her dad wouldn't make her do anything she didn't want to do, but she also wasn't sure how he'd react to her eagerness to tap into her Quirk's power.

That's what it was, after all. Eagerness. She realized, listening to the bubbling excitement in the pit of her stomach, that she really wanted to learn how to use this power. Yes, it was foreign and dangerous, but it was also enticing. No one she knew had a Quirk quite like it. She wanted to learn how to handle the power that rested inside her.

She was so lost in thought, the buzzing of her phone next to her made her jump. She grabbed it off the nightstand and saw with surprise that it was Izuku, already able to text her back.

 _Sorry it was just a gift card. It's hard to get out to the mall now._ _Happy Birthday again, and remember you can talk to me about anything at any time!_

Eri smiled to herself as she read the short text. She could only imagine what Izuku meant about it being hard to get out. It was likely partly his job and partly the media attention that had been thrust upon him. Even on nightly TV, she would often see something running about Deku the hero. She would always drop what she was doing and watch intently while her dad would simply roll his eyes at the spectacle the media made of him. Still, Eri knew he watched those news reports as seriously as she did. He had a soft spot for his problem child former student.

Eri was about to respond to Izuku when she heard the front door open and close. She figured she would reply later, knowing he was probably still on campus and more focused on meeting with All Might or the students he was trying to recruit.

"Dad!" Eri called, hopping off the bed. She stopped in the doorway of her room and peered over at the front door where Aizawa was dropping his satchel. "I finished all my finals," she grinned. "I'm done with school for the year!"

"Congratulations," Aizawa replied with a smile. "I'm finished as well. Just need to grade."

"Are you going to fail anyone?" Eri asked, walking over to meet him. He couldn't help but let out a laugh as she stopped next to him.

"A few."

He stepped into the apartment and walked to his bedroom. He came back with a hair tie and started pulling back his hair into a bun as he said, "Have you had lunch yet?"

Eri nodded. "They gave me lunch at school before my last test," she told him. "Are you hungry?"

"Nah, just making sure you've eaten." He walked to the living room and sat down on the couch. Eri followed and sat on the armrest next to him.

"Did you see Deku?" she asked. "He walked me home and gave me a card for my birthday."

"Make sure you thank him," Aizawa reminded her. "And yes, I know he's on campus. He talked to a few of my students about the agency he works for. They're a bit young for an internship like that, but a few of them will probably work there come next year."

"He's always so busy," Eri pouted, resting her chin in her hand. "I wish he could come by more often."

Aizawa shook his head immediately at the thought. "Trouble sticks to that kid like it's his second skin. It's for the best he only comes every now and then. Besides, the years after getting a hero license aren't the easiest. Graduating is the easy part. Now he has to prove himself and he works long hours to do so."

"I know," she sighed. Silence fell between them and Aizawa reached over to turn on the television. A mindless mid-day drama popped up on the screen. He flipped to a news station which was airing some hero-villain fight, then to a sports channel before he seemed to decide the drama was the top contender.

"Hey, Dad?" Eri started, turning her attention from the television to her father. He looked back at her lazily. She took a deep breath and continued, "I saw you fight. _That_ fight. The one where you got hurt."

The only way Eri knew that Aizawa had any reaction to her words was the way in which his expression seemed to freeze on his face. Otherwise, he was as stoic as ever, the expression on his face never changing.

"I saw it in the cafeteria when we got home from the hospital," Eri continued after a moment's hesitation. "Some kids were watching it."

"I see," he said. "I'm sorry you had to watch that."

"No, it's okay. I just had no idea that's what you did," Eri replied.

"That is not what I do for a living," Aizawa quickly corrected. "I teach. In that instance, I happened to be in the area and could not help but assist with the capture of the villain."

"Dad," Eri started, "How did you learn to control your Quirk?"

Aizawa studied her face for a long moment before replying. "My Quirk isn't something that necessarily needs to be controlled. It takes a lot of focus to activate it and I can only hold it for so long. It's also not particularly dangerous, so if I ever were to use it accidentally, it likely wouldn't do too much harm."

"Unlike mine." Her dad took a breath but refused to shake his head to confirm or deny her feelings. "My Quirk is dangerous," Eri continued. "That's why you taught me not to use it."

"I taught you not to use it because you were an injured six-year-old with no control over anything, never mind a Quirk that strong." Aizawa's tone was defensive now, and he'd begun to narrow his eyes. Eri knew she was beginning to hit a few nerves.

"What about now?" she asked. "Is it too strong for me now?"

"What are you getting at, Eri?" Aizawa asked irritably, folding his arms across his chest.

She stared back at him for a moment before replying with as much confidence as she could muster, "I want to learn how to use my Quirk. I want to train and become strong enough to use it."

"Are you looking to get into the hero program here?" her dad questioned. Eri shook her head.

"No. Well, I don't know. Maybe. But I won't be able to make the decision to apply for UA if I don't start learning how to use my Quick." Eri stood from her perch on the couch and faced her dad fully. "And I want to at least be able to have that choice. I don't know if I want to be a hero, but I want to be myself and this Quirk is part of me."

There was a long pause. Both stared at the other intently, neither willing to look away. Eri had never found her dad to be scary, but she could certainly see why his students found him intimidating. His blank stare carried a lot of weight and for a brief moment, she even regretted bringing this up at all.

Finally, Aizawa unfolded his arms and tucked a loose strand of black hair behind his ear. "Okay."

Eri blinked. "Okay?" she repeated. "So…?"

"I will train you."

Her lips curved upwards and she grinned at her father. "Really? You'll seriously teach me?"

"Yes, _but,_ " he held up a finger. "I am going to train you the same as I would train any other student. It will not be easy. And if you can't handle it, we will have to stop"

"That's okay," Eri quickly answered, not caring for a moment if this would be difficult. She already knew that going in.

"I figure if you're old enough to ask for something like this, you're old enough to receive it," Aizawa explained. He stood from the couch and handed Eri the remote. "If we're going to do this, I need to start grading now. We'll start tomorrow."


	4. Training

Eri's twelfth birthday started at five-thirty that morning. She had woken up on her own as the first light of day burst into her room. She didn't feel she would be able to get herself back to sleep, so she got out of bed and dressed in long leggings and a sweatshirt. With a tight scrunchie, she swept her long white hair into a high ponytail and flipped her bangs off to the side with a spare bobby pin.

From six until seven, she jogged around campus. Eri had never electively gone for a jog before, but she figured if she was going to start training, she would need to get into shape. That's what the UA students did after all and her father had been clear he would train her the same as them.

She felt a small thrill burst through her stomach as she ran. For so long, she had buried her Quirk away, but now she would finally get to harness its power. And, her dad hadn't fought her on it. He supported her desire to rediscover her Quirk. Of course, she knew that part of the reason he was so agreeable was the potential she held to restore Mirio's Quirk.

When she returned to the dorm, she was shivering. Despite her workout, the cold December air had bit her something bad and as she passed a window, she caught the bluish tint on her lips and the striking red on her nose and cheeks. Opening the door and feeling the wave of heat that greeted her was like heaven.

Most mornings at seven, there were kids milling around the common areas, but today was different. Most, if not all, of the 1-A class had left for winter break. Aside from the possible straggler, it was likely just her and Aizawa left in the building. On the bright side, she didn't have to wait behind others to get a cup of piping hot tea.

Cupping her hands around the mug for warmth, Eri made her way back to her little apartment. It was no surprise to find her dad still asleep, so she went into her own room and closed the door. As she made her way to her desk, she stopped by her floor length mirror and stared at herself for a long moment.

Her hair was an absolute mess. A few thin strands had slipped out of the ponytail, causing it to fall lazily to the side while wild hair licked her face. She was panting, something she hadn't noticed before but that she now easily saw with the heaving rise and fall of her chest and shoulders. Eri's cheeks were bright red, just as red as her eyes, but her lips and rest of her skin were ghostly pale.

Twelve.

Eri didn't feel older. She didn't think she looked older either. And yet, it was her birthday and another year had gone by.

It was hard for her to believe she'd been alive for twelve whole years. Her life had really only started after she was found by Deku and Mirio and then adopted by her father. Everything before then was a blur which was probably for the best. No one talked about it much, but Eri knew the life she was living now was a far cry from the desolate one she had been found living before.

Eri set her mug down and changed out of her sweaty clothes. She didn't put too much thought into her birthday outfit, but she did grab a pretty light blue sweater and white long pants. As she pulled the sweater on over her head, she caught a glimpse of the thin, off-color scars that littered her arms. They were another reminder of her past, one she tended to hide away. But, today she decided to roll her sleeves just a little and let them show. If she was going to embrace the Quirk part of her, she was going to embrace it all.

By the time she had finished changing and had run a brush through her hair, she heard her dad walking around in the kitchen. She paused at her mirror, thinking about tying her hair into a ponytail again, but decided against it. Instead, she left the scrunchie on her wrist and left her bedroom.

"Morning, Dad," Eri greeted with a wide grin as she stepped into the main room. Her dad was hunched over the kitchen counter, a mug of boiling water in front of him and a tea bag dangling from between his fingers.

At her voice, he lazily turned and offered her one of his rare smiles. "Happy Birthday, Eri. Do you want some tea?"

She held up the mug she'd plucked off her desk in answer. Aizawa nodded back to her and dunked the bag into his cup.

Once he'd made his tea and discarded the bag, he sat down on the couch next to his daughter, who had curled up on one end with her knees drawn to her chin. She cupped her mug and rested one side of it against her legs while she leaned over to let the steam warm her cold nose.

"You said you'd start training me today," Eri immediately started once her father had sat down. "So I went for a jog. All the other students go for runs in the morning and I figured I should too."

Aizawa studied her for a moment before he broke his gaze to take a sip of his breakfast drink. "I won't discourage you from exercising," he commented, "But it is a little cold outside, don't you think?"

"Freezing!" Eri replied. "But I want to get stronger. You only train strong kids and I don't want to be an exception."

With nothing to say to that comment, Aizawa fell silent, lifting his mug for another drink. The silence felt a little heavier than normal and was filled with anticipation on the part of Eri. She was waiting for her training to begin, but she had no idea what to expect. All these years, she'd only watched her father teach from afar. Never had she anticipated him being her own teacher.

"We'll begin a little later," Aizawa told her after a few minutes of quiet. "But let's get breakfast first."

Eri didn't answer, but she gulped down the last of her tea and hurried into her room to grab her jacket. Although it was winter break, the dining hall was still open, though with limited hours and without lunch. It was mostly for the teachers who lived on campus and for the students who lived too far away to go home.

When Eri came back into the main room, Aizawa had already finished his own tea and was ready to go. He wasn't one for coats. The long-sleeved sweater always seemed to be enough, regardless of the weather. Still, he always insisted that Eri wear her coat, hat, and mittens when it got cold outside.

"Here," Aizawa held out something in his hand as Eri emerged from her room and walked to the front door. With another step, she could clearly see the light blue gloves he held in his hand. They were pretty with plenty of padding and were made out of some smooth faux leather.

"Wow, thanks so much, Dad," Eri grinned, taking the gloves as her first birthday present from him this year.

"And, they have this," Aizawa flicked a strap that dangled off one of the gloves so that Eri could easily see how they connected to each other and to her coat. "So you won't leave them behind."

Eri's face went a little red, but she was grateful for the thought. Her leaving her mittens behind had become a problem and she was sure her father was sick of her coming home with chapped, bleeding hands each winter. "Thanks, Dad," she said again and put them on. "I'll wear them all the time and try not to forget them."

"That's all I ask," he said and opened the front door.

The pair made their way through campus to the dining hall. When Eri had gone on a run a few hours before, it had been much colder and much more deserted. Now, they weren't the only ones milling around and were among a few students heading in the same direction.

Warmth flooded Eri when she stepped inside the cafeteria. Her dad went to grab another cup of tea and she went straight for Lunch-Rush's line. When she made it to the front with her tray, he stepped away from the counter and came back with a generous slice of cake. It was yellow cake with some sort of fruit middle and it made Eri's eyes light right up.

"For me?" she asked and Lunch-Rush just nodded enthusiastically, flipping her a thumbs up. "Thank you Lunch-Rush!"

When she got to the table Aizawa had claimed, he eyed her cake, but said nothing about it, though he did steal a bite or two. Eri was thrilled with the change of pace for breakfast, though she shouldn't have been too surprised. On most of her birthdays, Lunch-Rush swapped her normal order for a big piece of cake.

When they finished with breakfast, the two started their walk back to the dorm. About a block away, near where the concrete walking path split off, Aizawa placed a hand on Eri's shoulder and stopped her.

"Come this way," he said, leading her down the path. Eri blinked up at him, clearly confused, but she did as she was told. They were then headed towards the main campus, where the main building and training grounds were. Eri began to feel excitement bubbling in her stomach. Were they going to train now? She wished she'd brought some workout clothes if they were going to go to the gym.

But then Aizawa gripped her shoulder again and pulled her off the path towards some bushes. With a confused look plastered all over her face, she let him lead her towards a bench as he went rifling through the bushes for a moment

Eri sat there, craning her neck to see what her father was doing. He finally came back with something clutched in his hand. It was so small, Eri couldn't even see what it was, just that he was indeed holding something.

"I appreciate you starting your training, but I want to unlock a bit of your Quirk first," he said. With the cold, Eri could see puffs of air pop from his mouth on every word. "Your Quirk is very taxing on your body due to the sheer strength it holds. You can change the physical state of an organic being, something that takes a lot of focus and energy to do correctly. Thankfully, your Quirk only works in one direction. Reverse. This means there's no undoing what you do with your Quirk, but you won't have to worry about exerting more energy. The only catch is that when you decide to use your Quirk, you must use it perfectly each time."

Eri nodded slowly, sensing the seriousness in her father's tone. He was always serious of course, but this was something very different. She could truly feel the weight of his words on her shoulders. She knew her Quirk was powerful and dangerous, but hearing it from her Dad put everything into perspective.

Aizawa unclenched his hand and revealed a rather large leave that had been partially torn down the middle. Eri stared at it, wondering if this was some sort of test. Was he trying to highlight how strong her power could be? Or was this merely something to throw her off?

"I want you to return this leaf to its prior state," Aizawa told her. "When I found it, it was perfectly intact, but as you can see, it's torn now. Although it is not human, it is a living thing and we should be able to activate your Quirk without worrying about harming a human or animal."

"You want me to reverse this… leaf?" Eri asked slowly, glancing from the plant to her father's very stern face. He nodded and she knew he was serious. It felt silly, fixing up a little leaf, but Eri understood why she was starting with this and not something larger.

"Okay." Eri steeled herself. She planted her feet firmly on the ground and took the leaf from her dad. In her left palm, she held it gently, as if she were holding a very small, very thin baby. With her right, she touched two fingers to the center of the leaf, just below the end of the tear.

She took a breath, closed her eyes, and exhaled. Looking deep within herself, she willed her Quirk to come back to her. It was like playing hide and seek with a ghost. Somewhere, buried within her was a powerful Quirk she had locked away. Now she had to find the key.

Even after all this time, she'd never tried to call back her Quirk. Not even once, despite her curiosity. It had always been too dangerous, too foreign. She was too busy being a normal girl with friends and homework and music. If she was essentially Quirkless, then so be it. At least she had love and joy and laughter.

But now she wanted more than anything to keep all of the good things in her life while also discovering this hidden side of her. Eri tried to clear her mind and imagined she was walking down a long hallway with doors on each side. She peered into each one, trying to see if her Quirk was there. It was a tedious task, but it was the only way she could think of to pull the Quirk from within her. After all, she had to be able to get to it, or else her training would never be able to start.

It took nearly fifteen minutes, but soon, Eri found it.

It was like riding a bike again after years. The ability had never left her, but it just took a little longer to recall the skill. She opened her eyes and watched as her fingers glowed with power she didn't quite remember, yet that felt like second nature. Slowly, she watched the leaf start to knit itself back together. It was like watching a movie in reverse. Once the leaf was knit together, it started to get smaller, and then suddenly, it popped out of existence entirely.

What Eri didn't realize was that this was not happening in slow motion. Aizawa watched as her fingers glowed and the leaf poofed away. He didn't see the fibers knitting back together or the leaf shrinking to the size of a tiny bud. It was just there one minute and then gone the next.

As the leaf popped away, Aizawa activated his Quirk to shut down hers. He didn't want her using it on herself.

Eri looked up at her father with a deep frown. "I'm sorry," she said.

"No," Aizawa shook his head as he blinked. His hair fell back down to rest on his shoulders. "You were able to call forth your Quirk as if you used it every day. That's a great start." He went to the nearby bush and plucked another leaf off of it. After tearing it, he handed it back to Eri. "Try again."

For the next hour, Eri sat on the bench while Aizawa stood before her and watched as she tried to knit together each torn leaf. Every time, she would activate her Quirk and every time she would make the leaf disappear. At last her dad was patient, never scolding her or giving much direction at all. He just watched and observed, stopping only to pluck another leaf from the bush behind them.

Eventually, he realized he didn't need to use erasure to stop her Quirk. Once the object she was working with disappeared, it would stop on its own. It was like the Quirk knew not to harm its master. He wasn't sure if that was something he'd somehow trained into her years ago or if that was how her Quirk had always worked, but he was glad to save his eyes the soreness.

He was also not wrong about how taxing her Quirk was on her body. Despite the smallness of the leaves she was working with, she could feel the tug of exhaustion growing stronger with each trial. It was like flexing a muscle she hadn't used in a while and some part of her felt sore, though she couldn't place exactly where that was physically.

When Aizawa noticed sweat on her forehead, he didn't move to get the next leaf. The one Eri was working with popped away and she looked at him expectantly, but he didn't move.

"I think we should call it a day," he told her, reaching over to place a hand on her forehead. "Your body temperature is rising, even in this cold."

Eri didn't like the idea of quitting, not without having at least one success. "One more try?" she begged.

"I'm not expecting you to do this perfectly on the first lesson," Aizawa explained, crossing his arms. "You've done perfectly fine for today. The goal here isn't to fix each leaf, it's to get used to how your Quirk feels."

"I know," Eri replied, though she did truly think the purpose was to fix the leaves. "But just one more?"

Aizawa hesitated, but he did get another leaf for her and tore it down the middle. Eri took it with shaking hands and steeled her will once more. Maybe getting it right wasn't the reason they were doing this, but she _wanted_ to fix this leaf more than anything.

She placed two fingers on the leaf and called forth her Quirk. Glowing fingers pressed against the leaf and she worked once again to knit the fibers back together and reconstruct the leaf. That was the easy part. The hard part was turning off her Quirk in time to keep the leaf at the same size and age it had been when it was torn. Once again, this proved to be a little too difficult for the girl. It just slipped through and caused the leaf to disappear, but she had felt herself pulling back, which was a definite change.

"Shoot," Eri breathed, her voice raspy from exertion. Glancing up at her dad, she opened her mouth to ask for just _one_ more try, but he was already shaking his head at her.

"Let's get home," he said, offering her a hand. Although he'd phrased it as a suggestion, his tone showed that it was anything but. Eri hesitated, still wanting to give it a few more tries, but there was no way her father would agree.

Eri grasped his hand and he helped pull her to her feet. She stumbled forward a bit and was stopped by Aizawa's firm hand on her shoulder. It wasn't until she was standing on her own that she realized just how much energy her Quirk had taken out of her. It was barely past ten in the morning, but Eri felt like she'd been awake for days.

Noticing how slow Eri was, Aizawa matched her pace and decided to keep his hand on her shoulder. She was definitely warm, but at least he wouldn't have to worry about her freezing out in the cold weather.

"I'm going to get it," Eri said suddenly once they were back on the main path to the dorms. "I'm going to control my Quirk and figure out how to stop it once I get it going."

"Yes, you will," Aizawa agreed, stealing a glance at his daughter. He noted that despite the exhaustion on her face, her expression was one of intense determination. It was the kind of expression he often saw in his UA students. It almost scared him how serious she was about this, but also filled him with pride.

"Thank you." Eri looked up at him. They were stepping up to the front porch of the dorm. "For agreeing to train me. I'm going to be your best student!"

Aizawa paused to ruffle the top of her hair for a moment before he opened the door of the building for her. "I'm sure you will be," he replied, placing a hand between her shoulder blades and nudging her inside.

* * *

So _, I might have changed a bit about Eri's Quirk just to actually make it trainable. Not totally confirmed, but as Aizawa mentioned at the hospital after they rescued her, the Quirk will only work on living beings, not inanimate objects like buildings. So, I figured plants would work given they have cells and all that. Not a science person and this might be out of the realm of the author's original intent, but here we are anyway! I also didn't think Aizawa was the kind of dude to go around injuring puppies or worms for Eri to rewind. I hope that's alright and doesn't break the story for anyone!_

 _Anyway, thank you to everyone who reads this story! I really appreciate your comments and thank you for continuing to keep up!_


	5. The Breakthrough

For the entirety of winter break, Eri worked on controlling her Quirk. She and her father spent long mornings on that bench near UA's main building trying to repair the leaves he would tear. Though, after a few days, it became noticeable that the bush was losing its leaves, so Aizawa moved them further down the path to another bench with a bush behind it.

Eri was quite like his actual students. Even on the brink of exhaustion, she would ask for one more leaf, one more try, one more chance to prove that she could do it. Sometimes she would push herself too far and he'd have to carry her home. Though he would lightly scold her for not being more honest about her limits, he could hardly get mad. She was his daughter after all.

On the Friday morning before classes started up again, Eri and Aizawa were at their same bench working on the same puzzle that had taken up the past two weeks. Throughout the week, students were beginning to arrive on campus again for classes and a few passed along the path, carrying suitcases and boxes with them. Some who had Aizawa either this year or a year prior stopped and said hi, but none stayed long enough to figure out what they were doing.

They'd been there for about an hour and Eri was starting to grow tired. She knew from the hesitant look in her dad's eyes that he would have her stop soon, though she hoped he'd let her continue just a little while longer. Something about today felt different and with each leaf, she felt closer to total control than she ever had before.

Another leaf popped out of existence and Eri sighed as she looked back at Aizawa. He watched her for a moment before plucking another leaf and saying, "Last one."

Although she wanted to protest, Eri just nodded her head and took the plant from him. For a moment, she just breathed and looked at the leaf. It was a fragile thing, tiny and thin between her fingers. There was a little rip that reached its center and Eri knew if she didn't hold onto it, it would easily blow away even in the low wind.

"I'm never going to get it," Eri grumbled in a rare display of self-consciousness. "I don't understand. You told me I was able to heal Deku when I was, like, six. So obviously I used to be able to control this."

Aizawa shook his head. "In that moment, Midoriya was continuously being destroyed and rebuilt so you could heal them. I had to turn your Quirk off to end the cycle. To be honest, I believed that you could only use your Quirk on people. I'm just glad we can get it to work on other living things. But no, Eri, you were never really able to control your Quirk while using it." He shoved his hands in his pockets. "Now, give this one more go and then we'll head back."

It amazed her how patient her dad was. She seemed no closer to figuring this out than she was two weeks before, but every day they returned to the bench to spend an hour on this project. If it took forever, she had no doubt he'd spend time with her until she herself decided to call it quits.

Which, of course, would never happen.

Eri touched the leaf with the fingers on her other hand, pinning it to her palm. She took a deep breath and called forth her Quirk as she had countless times before. As she called it, she looked for the controls. There had to be some way to stop the Quirk short while it was activated.

In her mind's eye, she thought of a lever, one that was comically large just like what she'd seen in cartoons. As she activated her Quirk, she tried to grab onto the bar and tried to pull down but found it was stuck. Still, she continued to try to shut down her Quirk at the same time she was knitting the leaf back into one whole piece. With closed eyes and gritted teeth, she tried everything to cease her Quirk. Sweat formed on her brow and ran down the side of her face. She bit the inside of her cheek so hard it started to bleed. If she had anything to say about it, she was going to finally do this.

Aizawa watched his daughter struggle with their final trial of the day. It pained him to see her so stressed, but he was incredibly proud of how far she had come with her Quirk. Although he had never dared discourage her, when she came to him weeks before about training, he was not sure they would get very far at all. He had completed underestimated her, something he certainly wouldn't do again.

"Agh!" Eri suddenly hunched over and Aizawa rushed forward, his breath catching in his throat. He knelt down in front of the bench and grasped Eri's shoulders. She flinched at his touch but didn't tear herself away from it.

"Eri," Aizawa said in a deep voice full of concern. "Come on, snap out of it. Stop fighting your Quirk." Eri was shaking and for a moment Aizawa thought she couldn't hear him. Then, she turned her head from side to side in complete defiance.

He really wished she would be a little _less_ like him sometimes.

After his next blink, his usually dark eyes glowed bright red and his hair began to stand on end. In that instant, Eri's fingertips also stopped glowing and her shoulders fell before she slumped against her dad.

"Eri?" She was burning to the touch despite the chilly January air. Aizawa brushed back a few strands of her hair so he could feel her forehead. It was also incredibly warm, though she was starting to cool down a bit now that her Quirk had deactivated.

He was about to gather her up when Eri's eyes blinked open and she put one shaking hand to her head and pressed one against her dad's chest. Her fingers curled around the leaf and she pressed it tightly into her palm. For a moment, Eri just breathed, trying to fill her lungs with as much air as possible. Once she'd calmed herself down, she opened her hand and looked down at the leaf.

It was perfectly intact, though a little smaller than it was when Aizawa first plucked it from the bush. Still, Eri couldn't help but frown as she looked up into her dad's worried eyes.

"I almost had it," she grumbled. "I was _so_ close to getting it."

Aizawa's frown deepened from worry into annoyance. "Eri, you were clearly in pain and obviously unable to control the Quirk without harming yourself. Success isn't the goal here if it comes at the expense of your health." He placed his hand back on her forehead. "You have a high fever. I need to get you home and see if we need to call Recovery Girl." Calling the school nurse was not something he particularly wanted to do. He always remembered the way she would scold All Might for pushing Midoriya too hard. Hell, he remembered how _he_ would scold All Might for Midoriya's injuries. Oh, how the tables had turned.

Eri wanted to protest. Though she knew her dad was absolutely in the right, she felt slighted by having her Quirk turned off for her. It might not have looked like it, and it might have killed her before she did it, but Eri felt she was extremely close to turning her Quirk off on her own. To have her dad deactivate it by force rattled her and left a bitter taste in her mouth.

Aizawa sighed and stood, keeping a palm resting on one of Eri's shoulders. "Come on, let's go." He tried to keep his voice kind, though he wanted to scold her like he would one of his students for doing something this stupid. Eri still looked put out, but she didn't say anything more. Slowly, she slipped off the bench, but her legs buckled beneath her. She would have fallen straight to the ground if Aizawa hadn't sensed her struggle and caught her.

Wordlessly, he picked her up and shifted her onto his back. Eri was less than thrilled about this arrangement but too tired to protest. By the time Aizawa had reached the dorms, he could tell that she was fast asleep. Her breathing had evened to small puffs of air that lingered on his neck and her arms had slipped from his shoulders to dangle next to his own arms.

When they reached the apartment, Aizawa laid her down on the couch and draped a blanket over her. He went to the kitchen and came back with a cool washcloth to place on her still far too warm head. In a rare display of uncertainty, he shifted from one foot to the next, glancing between his daughter and the cell phone he'd pulled out of his pocket.

He really didn't want to call Recovery Girl. She was bound to chide him. The only difference between this and teachers pushing their students too far is that he did this to his own daughter. Still, he also had to make sure Eri would be okay. Seeing her like this scared him. She looked so small and far too young. It brought back memories of her being in the hospital after they had first met when she was only six. She couldn't control her Quirk then, and she didn't seem to be able to control it now. Maybe this hadn't been the best idea.

The plan was never to permanently shut down her Quirk, but it was such a dangerous power, that's just what ended up happening. He always did want to teach her how to use it, but by the time she'd gotten used to her new life, there didn't seem to be a reason to introduce something so stressful. Besides, Eri had never shown interested in her Quirk before. It was like a part of her was glad to be done with that chapter in her life.

Now, though, like any other kid her age, she was curious about what her Quirk could do and if it would ever be enough to become a pro-hero. Almost every child, even those that wouldn't end up applying to a school like UA, considered the possibilities of becoming a hero.

Eri turned over in her sleep, the damp cloth sliding a bit off her forehead. Aizawa straightened it and unlocked his phone. Rationally, he knew his daughter would be okay, but the dad side of him was freaking out a little.

"Hello, Recovery Girl. Yes, I'm well. Can you make a house call? Eri is sick."

Hopefully, she wouldn't yell at him too much.

* * *

"Just a little bit of rest will do the trick. Wake her around dinner time and have her eat some soup, but tomorrow she'll be good as new."

The short old woman stood from where she knelt next to the couch Eri was still fast asleep on. With a well-placed kiss, some color had returned to the girl's cheeks and her fever had gone down considerably. Aizawa was leaning against the opposite wall, looking far more concerned than he'd like to admit he was.

"So, she'll be alright?" he asked.

"Absolutely." Recovery Girl closed her medical bag that she had set on the coffee table. When she turned back to Aizawa, she had a knowing glint in her eyes. "Now, care to tell me how she ended up in this condition? I can tell this is no normal flu."

With a sigh, he pushed himself off the wall and walked over to the couch. For a moment, he just stood with a hand pressed against Eri's cheek, watching as her even breaths caused her chest to rise and fall. At least she was resting peacefully now. She was beginning to look like herself again as well, not like the sick six-year-old he'd encountered in the hospital.

His silence had not deterred Recovery Girl, who looked at him expectantly. She was clearly not going to leave without some sort of answer.

"I've been training with Eri on how to control her Quirk," he told her reluctantly. She immediately raised an eyebrow, quite shocked at the answer she had received.

"I didn't think you wanted her to learn to activate her Quirk."

"I didn't." Aizawa brushed a strand of hair away from Eri's face. "But at this point, how could I say no? She's going into Middle School. She's one of the only ones who doesn't have or can't use her Quirk. So, of course she's curious and wants to learn. And I always did want to teach her, but the timing never seemed right. I didn't want to burden her."

"Hmm." Recovery Girl looked at the sleeping girl again. She remembered when Eri first became a part of the UA family and was well aware of the decision to teach her not to activate her Quirk. "How has it been going?"

"Well," Aizawa said. "Honestly, up until today, she's been doing very well. She just can't seem to turn it off on command. Usually she lets the object leave existence, but this time she wouldn't let go. I had to use Erasure to shut it down myself." A proud smile crossed his lips. "She wasn't too happy about that."

"Of course not," Recovery Girl clucked, "She's your daughter after all." She watched as Aizawa pulled the blanket around Eri up a little more and tucked it around her firmly. "Seven years ago I never would have pegged you as a single dad," she continued.

"Seven years ago we weren't expecting to find a child in such a dire condition," he countered.

Recovery Girl shook her head. "But you didn't have to take her in. UA would have given her all the resources she needs to thrive and you could have gone and lived your life."

"My life is being a teacher," Aizawa replied with a noncommittal shrug. "I had no plans to change that. Eri was unexpected, but she didn't pull me from my path. Just added to it."

"You've gone soft," the older woman teased and Aizawa rolled his eyes, though he couldn't help the smile from spreading. Recovery Girl picked up her bag and started walking to the front of the apartment. Aizawa followed and opened the door fo her.

"Thank you for stopping by," he said.

"Any time. Just make sure she eats something and call me tomorrow if her fever hasn't gone down"

"I will. Thanks again."

Although Recovery Girl had eased his worry a bit, Aizawa couldn't help but keep watch over Eri as she rested. He moved onto his laptop for school preparations and took up sitting in the chair opposite the couch. That way he was able to keep watch while he wrote up lesson plans.

It was about fifteen minutes before Aizawa was going to wake her up when Eri finally started to wake up. She felt heavy, like there were thousands of invisible weights on top of her. For some reason, she felt like she'd been asleep for days, though she could tell from the feel of the fabric beneath her that she was lying on the couch. That puzzled her. Very rarely did she ever sleep on the couch. The last time she'd slept on the couch was when she was sick two years ago, and only because she'd just fallen asleep there while watching a movie.

Could she be sick? Although she felt warm and heavy, she didn't feel sick. Her nose wasn't stuffy and her throat didn't hurt. Though her head pounded, she didn't have that distinct sick feeling that followed her whenever she had even so much as a cold.

"Eri?"

She turned her head to the sound of a familiar soft voice just a short distance away from her. It was then that she realized she'd never opened her eyes and was still encased in the darkness she'd woken up in. Slowly, she pried one eye open and then the other. After a moment, her dad came into focus. He was sat on the edge of the chair, his hands folded in his lap as he looked her over with a worried expression on his face.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

Eri just mumbled something while shaking her head. That was enough for Aizawa, who stood and set his laptop on the coffee table. "I'm going to heat up something for dinner and then we'll get you into bed." She nodded in response and sat herself up against the armrest of the couch. The motion made her feel a little dizzy, but once she was sitting up, she felt much better. Laying down was hurting her legs and she needed a chance to stretch.

It was only a few minutes later when Aizawa came back with a cup of miso soup. He handed her the bowl which she took gratefully, the smell of food triggering a reminder for how hungry she was.

Aizawa returned to his laptop for the few minutes it took Eri to slurp down the soup. When it was finished, she set the bowl down and slouched back into the comforting fold of the couch. The meal had made her feel less fuzzy and it helped clear her head. Unfortunately, what remained was just a headache, but she already felt a lot better than she had when she woke up.

"What happened?" she asked, struggling to get her memories to return to her.

Aizawa peered at her over the top of his computer screen. "You pushed yourself too far in trying to stop your Quirk. You have a high fever, but Recovery Girl says you should be fine by tomorrow."

Though his tone was as neutral as ever, Eri couldn't help but feel guilty. She could only imagine how worried he'd been about her. Although her dad wasn't one to display his emotions openly, she knew better than anyone that he was incredibly protective of her. And, though she couldn't quite pull the memory into her mind, she knew he asked her to stop and she didn't.

"Eri?" Aizawa asked, noticing that she'd gone quiet for a long moment.

"Yeah, sorry." She looked up at him. "Are you mad at me?"

"Mad?" he questioned, slowly closing his laptop in favor of the conversation. "No. Why would I be mad?"

"Because I pushed myself too far," she said as she looked down at her lap. "And I still wasn't able to turn off my Quirk."

"Eri, I don't care that you weren't able to gain control of your Quirk," Aizawa replied in an even, kind tone. "And I'm certainly not mad that you wanted to try as hard as you could. I'm a little worried about how hard you pushed and how quickly you developed a fever, but you're okay and that's what matters."

"So we can still train?" Eri asked, looking up with bright, hopeful eyes.

Aizawa stood up and collected the empty bowl. He'd had the chance to think while Eri was asleep and anticipated this would be one of her first questions upon waking. Of course, his first instinct was to put an end to all the training, but that would hardly be fair. "I think we should take a break for a few days while you recover," he told her. "But I don't see why we can't continue training your Quirk once you are feeling better."

Although Eri wanted to protest and say she was feeling better now, she decided it would be better not to push her luck. She wouldn't have even been surprised if Aizawa had decided to end her training altogether after what happened today and she was grateful she could continue. "Alright, I think you should get to bed," Aizawa said when he came back into the living room after rinsing out Eri's finished bowl. She pouted at the suggestion.

"I don't need to sleep," Eri argued. "I've been sleeping all day!"

"Precisely," Aizawa countered. "You're unwell and need to rest." Still, Eri didn't move. He studied her expression for a moment and knew he could get her to go to bed, but in the end, decided against it. "Fine," he sighed. "You can watch a little bit of television." Maybe it wasn't the best idea and if Recovery Girl knew, she would kill him, but he was so glad to see his daughter awake and alright, he couldn't bring himself to force her away to her room.

Satisfied, Eri sunk further back against the couch while Aizawa turned on the tv to some movie on a family network. He grabbed his laptop from the coffee table and sat down next to Eri who immediately curled up against his side. Aizawa adjusted the blanket around her shoulders and then turned his attention to the lesson plan he still needed to finalize before the weekend was over.

Although Eri had protested to stay up longer, she ended up falling asleep relatively quickly. It was a mere fifteen minutes before her eyes slipped closed and Aizawa felt her weight slack completely against him. For a moment, he considered getting her into bed right then but decided against it. It had been so long since Eri curled up against him and fell asleep. It meant she was getting older and he was proud of that, but he missed the nights she would push herself up against his side and fall asleep there.

Thankfully, he was still a Pro Hero, so carrying her to bed was not difficult, and he could carry a twelve-year-old just as easy as a seven-year-old. So, when he did finish his lesson plans and decided to turn in for the night himself, he gathered Eri up and carried her to bed. She was still a little warm, but her fever had gone down considerably. When he tucked her into bed, she hardly stirred. He ruffled her hair gently, made sure she was comfortable and turned off the light before retiring to his own room.

* * *

The next morning, Eri was indeed feeling much better. At the very least, she was well enough to argue with Aizawa that she could definitely do some training.

"I only have two more days before I have to go back to school," Eri whined, dramatically flipping her head back and groaning. "Please, Dad! I have to get better!"

"Yes, you do," Aizawa didn't look up from his computer. He was sitting at the desk in his bedroom and Eri was leaning in the doorway. It was about ten and she had slept in quite late, but her fever was gone and she showed no signs of stress from the day before. "You need to get better for your health. Go rest."

"I've _been_ resting!" she complained. "I slept all day and all night and now I'm sick of resting. Come on, I'm obviously all better! You said so yourself."

"I said your fever was down, but I never said you were all better." It was difficult to keep an even tone. Eri was a very smart girl, but when it came to her own wellbeing, she was as daft as some of his hero-track students. "Eri, I mean it. We're not training today. You're staying in and resting so you're ready for school on Monday."

"At least let me go for a walk!" Aizawa glanced at her and leveled a very dad-like glare in her direction. "Come on, it's not even that cold out. I'll wear my gloves and everything. Everyone's back on campus and I missed seeing people around. Just a quick walk."

He studied her face for a long moment, watching as she bit her lip in anticipation of his verdict. Finally, he let out a defeated sign and his eyes flickered to the clock on the bottom of his computer screen. "Wait until noon and you can walk to the cafeteria for lunch," he told her. "And then straight home."

It wasn't quite what Eri was hoping for, but it was victory enough. She jumped for joy and ran over, wrapping up her dad in a hug around his neck and chest. He rolled his eyes at the gesture, but couldn't help the smile that slipped onto his lips. "Until then," Aizawa added as Eri headed out into the living room " _Rest_."

Not daring to defy her dad and grateful for the leniency she got, Eri did as she was told. For the next hour and a half or so, she curled up on her bed with a book and generally kept quiet and out of her dad's hair.

Just before noon, Eri got up, dressed, and put on her coat and gloves. She stepped into Aizawa's room once more to show him that she was dressed appropriately. Seeing that Eri looked well, he allowed her to go. With a skip and a wave, she bid him goodbye and left out the front door.

The air was still chilly, but it didn't have the bite it did the day before. Eri was glad to be outside. Even a day in the house had felt like an eternity. She didn't mind lazy rainy days, but she felt more restless than usual. All she wanted to do was wander around and stretch her legs. Yesterday hadn't been fun, but she felt fine now.

She couldn't help but notice the familiar bush next to the familiar bench as she passed them on the way to the dining hall in the main building. Eri even tried not to stop, but her legs acted on their own. Aizawa had been clear: no training for a while, but Eri longed to activate her Quirk again and give it another go.

Moving closer, she searched the area around her to make sure no one she knew was nearby. There were just a few kids with their families moving back into the dorms and no one paid her any mind. Even the students she recognized walked right past her, too busy unpacking and moving back in to notice her. Even in a campus full of people, she was left to her own devices.

Eri plucked a leaf and tore it, but then stopped and stared at it for a long moment. She had come so close to turning her Quirk off on her own, but she hadn't quite been able to do it. Aizawa had to shut it down for her and she'd gotten incredibly sick. If she tried something like that again, he'd never let her train and she would be in _so_ much trouble. Yet, the itch to try was overwhelming and before she knew it, she was sticking two glowing fingers into the center of the leaf.

As it had time and time before, she felt the leaf slowly knit itself together with the aid of her Quirk. Cells regenerated and strands reformed and soon it was back together as it had been before Eri tore it from the branch. That was the easy part, but Eri could already feel the leaf starting to shrink. Soon the cells would disappear one by one and cause the leaf, in turn, to shrink to the size of a bud and then disappear altogether. She didn't have much time.

Eri looked deep inside her, trying to force her Quirk to stop. Why was this so difficult? She couldn't control it on her own, but her dad had been able to shut it down without any fuss. Why couldn't she do that? Everyone else seemed to have some control over their powers. Even the rowdiest elementary schoolers knew how to start and stop their Quirks at will, even if they preferred to cause trouble instead. But, Eri never had that choice. It was either off or on, no inbetween.

That was going to end, Eri decided. Maybe not today. Maybe the leaf with pop out of existence as every other one had. Maybe it would take years for her to get this under control. In the end, she would get it. She would unlock the secret of her Quirk and figure this out.

It was then that something seemed to click. All of it became so clear that Eri couldn't believe she hadn't realized the solution in the very beginning. When she tried to repair the leaf, she felt paralyzed, as though she couldn't move a muscle. That was her body lying to her. She could move. She knew now that she could because she did when she hunched over herself the day before.

Eri pulled her fingers from the leaf. It wasn't easy. In fact, it was quite a struggle, but she was able to tear away from the leaf.

Her Quirk stopped. The leaf fluttered to the ground. And Eri grinned.

She did it.

She _did it_.

For the first time without being forced or otherwise incapacitated, she stopped her Quirk on her own. She _knew_ she was close the day before. It just took a little extra time to solidify what she already knew.

Immediately, she grabbed another leaf from the bush and tore it in half. Excitement coursed through her, masking any stress she was under from her first success. Eri placed two fingers onto the leaf and fused it back into one piece. Then, once she was sure it was back to its normal state, she pulled her fingers away.

On.

Off.

Easy.

Eri couldn't believe it. Why had it taken this long to click, for her to realize that she could move when using her Quirk? Part of her felt incredibly silly for not figuring this out before. How had her other teachers missed this? How had her _dad_ missed this? Maybe it was something she had to discover for herself, something so obvious that they'd all overlooked this. Of _course_ she could move while using her Quirk, but she'd always been so focused on flipping it on and off like a switch. She never considered pulling the plug entirely.

Although she was tempted to try again with another leaf, she knew her dad would not be happy if she was late and feverish again. At the thought of her father, she sucked in a long breath as she continued toward the dining hall. She wanted more than anything to share the good news with him, but also knew that she would be punished for using her Quirk after her he had explicitly told her not to. It would have to wait until they started training and Eri would just have to pretend then that it was the first time she'd been able to do it.

Eri ate and hurried back, having taken up a lot of time with the leaf practice. She returned home around one, which she thought was a pretty acceptable time, and walked through the now bustling halls of the 1-A dorm. Kids were back with parents who lugged suitcases and furniture. Others who were done were making lunch and dinner plans over in the living room or greeting friends they hadn't seen in a few weeks.

Some offered a hello to Eri as she passed, which she politely returned. After one such interaction, she heard the child's parent whisper, "Who is she?"

"Aizawa-sensei's daughter," came the reply.

There was a pause and then the response came, which Eri could only barely make out. " _Eraserhead has a daughter?_ "

She unlocked her front door and called out, "I'm home!" in case her father was engrossed in something on his computer and wasn't able to hear the stifled sounds of the door in the entryway. To her surprise, he whirled around not a few feet from where she was, clearly on the phone and looking quite pained. Her father never wore his emotions on his face, but she could clearly sense fear in his eyes.

"Thank you," Aizawa said. "I'll be there." He pulled the phone from his ear and turned it off.

"Wha-" Eri started, but the answer came quicker.

"It's All Might. He's in the hospital."


	6. All Might

"Dad, what's going on?" Eri asked for the third time while Aizawa rushed around the apartment trying to find his coat. She was still in hers from venturing to the dining hall and fiddled nervously with the zipper as she shifted from foot to foot anxiously in the middle of the living room.

"I don't know, Eri," he replied as calmly as he could once he found the coat discarded halfway under his bed. "I'm heading to the hospital now." He looped one arm into the jacket while he grabbed his bedroom door handle with the other and shut it.

"I want to come to." Aizawa glanced at Eri as a firm 'no' lingered on the tip of his tongue. "Please?" she pressed before he could reconsider his initial answer. "I need to know that Uncle Might is okay and also I feel better and you need to take care of me anyway, right? So I might as well come with you!"

"I said to rest," her father countered, though there was no trace of an argument in his words. Sighing, he grabbed the keys to the car he hardly ever used and waved Eri towards the door. "Fine, come on then."

Eri hurried after him, not wanting to give him the chance to change his mind. Now that she had at least gotten out the door, she could focus her attention on worrying over All Might. This wouldn't be the first time in the years she'd known him that All Might ended up in the hospital. He usually spent a few weeks in the winter battling some sort of cough or flu, but the urgency in her dad's voice told her this was not the case now.

It was no secret that All Might was sickly. Eri knew he used to be a hero, the number one hero in fact, and that before she met him, he had used up the last of his power. She knew what the general public knew about All Might, plus a few extra tidbits gathered from years of being a close family friend of him and Izuku. Still, every time he ended up in the hospital, it scared her, because she had never been sheltered from the fact that All Might was going to die at some point.

"Do you think he'll be okay?" Eri asked about ten minutes into the car ride. As Aizawa slowed down for a light, he turned to look at her wide scared eyes. Part of him wished he'd left her at home, but he knew it would have been cruel to leave her behind with no way of knowing how things were.

"I don't know," he replied, opting for an honest answer. Eri was too old now to be shielded from this reality and it would be better for her to be there to process. "We'll find out when we get there."

Eri just nodded, falling silent once more as she watched the city pass by. She hated car rides to the hospital and she hated that there was now a certain feeling that went along with them. Whether it was her dad, Deku, All Might, and even once Present Mic, she couldn't stand the sinking feeling of dread that pooled in her stomach the closer they got.

After what felt like an eternity but was actually just a few short minutes later, the car pulled into the parking garage of the hospital. Aizawa navigated to an open space and parked before he and Eri stepped out. Eri bundled her jacket around her, suddenly feeling much colder. Aizawa took notice of the shiver that went up her spine but didn't say anything, instead deciding to silently wrap an arm around her shoulder as he guided her into the hospital.

He stopped at a reception desk who told him to take the elevator the third floor. After getting off the elevator, they were escorted to a waiting room on the floor, just across from the nurse's desk, but away from any of the other rooms. As they rounded the corner, Eri immediately spotted Present Mic with his bright gold hair set up as tall as usual. He was talking to Midnight, who appeared to be quite sad as she tucked a strand of black hair from her face. Izuku was on the other side of the waiting room, eyes rimmed red as he talked to Uravity and Froppy. Eri couldn't see the expressions on the girls' faces since their back was to them, but she could hear the low somber tone they were speaking in.

When Aizawa and Eri walked in, everyone seemed to stop. Present Mic smiled widely, while Midnight offered a sullen half smile. Uravity and Froppy turned around with their lips turned upwards at the pair, but calling their expressions "smiles" would be a long shot. The only person who showed any sign of another emotion was Izuku who looked both shocked and thrilled that Aizawa and Eri were there.

"I didn't think you'd come," he said, walking over. Izuku's green mop of hair was as messy as ever and in his civilian clothes, he looked quite young. The white long-sleeved shirt he wore showed the outline of the muscles underneath, but he had retained his baby face through the years.

"Of course we came," Aizawa replied, meeting him halfway and placing a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder. "How is he doing?"

"Good," Izuku replied, unconsciously glancing in the direction of All Might's hospital room. "A doctor is in there now with him. I think I might have freaked out a little. We were at lunch and he just collapsed. I thought for sure this was…" He shook his head, allowing himself to let go of the thought. "Anyway, he should be alright. The doctor said it was the perfect storm of a cold, low blood pressure, and an already weak heart."

"Well, he always is one for dramatics," Aizawa said dryly, though he offered his old student a kind look. Izuku beamed at the joke, nodding eagerly.

"So, Uncle Might is okay?" Eri piped up glancing from adult to adult.

"He will be, little listener," Mic replied, patting the top of her head. "What have you been up to? Your dad doesn't take you around the school anymore because he hates us." Eri laughed at the joke while Aizawa shot him a glare.

"She's twelve and has her own classes," Aizawa replied. "It's not like I can set her under my desk with crayons for the day."

"That would have been _much_ better than finals," Eri reasoned with a giggle.

"I'm sure you did just fine on your finals," Midnight said. "You take after your Aunt Midnight, you know. You're beautiful and smart."

That was the break they needed to lighten the atmosphere in the room. They chatted amongst themselves about simple topics like Eri's schooling or the last semester of school at UA. Midnight jokingly complained about having to take over All Might's classes, but conceded that she'd do anything "for that idiot skeleton."

Uravity and Froppy talked about some of their recent adventures, dazzling Eri with some less violent hero stories. And, although Aizawa made no effort to show his feelings, he was quite pleased to hear how well his students were doing after graduation.

A buzz on Ochaco's phone stole away the attention of the room and she swiftly grabbed it and check the message. After reading it, she nudged Tsuyu and showed her what had been sent before turning to the rest of the group.

"We have to get going," Ochaco frowned. "Emergency meeting at our agency." Turning to Izuku, she wrapped him in a hug. "I'm glad All Might is doing well, but let us know if anything changes, okay? Anything at all."

"Of course," Izuku replied, exchanging the hug from Ochaco for one from Tsuyu. "Tell Iida I said hi."

"I will," Ochaco nodded. "He's really sorry he couldn't be here with you, but he'll stop by as soon as he gets back from his trip. He also said to call him when you get the chance."

"I think a few others will stop by in the next few days," Tsuyu added. "They'll be anxious to know that he's doing better."

"I'm sure it will all be good news from here," Izuku told them, plastering a smile across his face. It was obvious from the glint in his eyes that he wasn't entirely sure if that was the case, but he refused to believe anything different. "I really appreciate you guys coming so quick." He looked at the rest of the group. "All of you. Thank you."

"I think I need to get moving too," Midnight announced once the two young heroes had left the waiting room. "Classes on Monday and everything. I have some lesson plans to wrap up. Extra lessons now!"

"Same here," Present Mic said. "Hopefully we'll get to see the big dude awake when we stop by tomorrow."

"I'm sure you will." Izuku gave both of his old teachers a hug. "Thank you both."

"Of course!" Mic replied and turned to look at Eri and Aizawa. "Well, see you in school on Monday, and good luck on your last semester of primary school, little listener!"

"Thanks, Uncle Mic," Eri smiled back at him. "Hey, if my final grades are good, will you let me come onto your radio show again?"

"Oh, you still listen to that old thing?" Mic asked, clearly amused.

"Every Friday," Eri replied. "Even when Dad tells me to turn it down!"

"Well, thank you." Mic ruffled her hair. "I'll see what my schedule is for the next few weeks okay?"

Eri nodded and the two teachers disappeared around the corner. That just left her, Aizawa, and Izuku, who looked a little deflated since the company had gone. With a heavy sigh, the green-haired hero flopped onto a waiting room chair opposite the ones his former teacher and Eri were sitting on.

"Are you alright, Deku?" Eri asked, leaning forward in her seat. "You must be so tired."

"I'm fine, Eri!" Izuku's smile wobbled a bit, but he refused to let it slip. He had to keep it up for his friends and now especially for Eri. "Just a little worried is all. You guys don't have to stay, really. I don't want to put you out and, as I said, I think I might have overreacted a little."

"We'll stay until we can see him," Aizawa immediately replied. "If for no other reason than to make sure you don't go catatonic on us. I know that fake smile of yours, problem child. You're not fooling me."

Izuku stared at him for a long moment before letting out a puff of air that was somewhere between a laugh and a sigh. "I never could fool you, sensei," he said. He still maintained a soft expression, but his smile had slipped just a little and Eri was beginning to see the worry in his eyes.

They sat in comfortable silence for just a few minutes before a doctor stepped out into the waiting room. "Yagi?" he asked looking between the three that remained. Izuku immediately stood up.

"Yes, how is he?" he asked, unable to hide the nervousness in his voice.

"Resting," the doctor replied. "He's awake now, though and should be up for a short visit."

At that, Aizawa and Eri stood and fell into step behind Izuku to be taken to the hospital room. Upon entry, Eri immediately noticed that the room was quite similar to the one her dad had been in a few weeks before. The bed was facing the same way and light filtered in through the window in the same manner.

All Might sat himself up when the guests arrived. He looked incredibly pale, almost as white as the sheets he was under. A tube ran around his face and rested under his nose and he was hooked up to quite a few different machines. Wires sprouted from around him as though they were built into his very skin and, if it were even possible, he looked skinnier than Eri last remembered. It was not a very pretty sight and she positioned herself just behind Aizawa.

"All Might, how are you feeling?" Izuku asked. He was a few steps ahead of Aizawa and took a place right next to the head of the hospital bed.

"Oh, I'm alright my boy," the man replied, waving him off. "You worry too much. I'm just fine."

"Yes, with all those wires coming off of you, you're the spitting image of 'just fine.'" Aizawa pointed out, coming up next to Izuku.

"Hello, my friend," All Might smiled. "Come to see me on my deathbed?"

"All Might!" Izuku exclaimed, his eyes going wide for a moment before slanting with disapproval at the joke. Eri clutched her dad's pant leg at the mention of death and looked between the adults for confirmation that All Might was not going to die.

"If I thought you were on your deathbed, I'd just wait for the funeral," Aizawa replied, a soft expression betraying his joking dryness.

"But you're going to be _fine_ ," Izuku insisted, looking right at Eri as he said it. He shot her a smile that she weakly returned. Aizawa looked down at Eri, as though he had forgotten she was there. He offered her a smile as well to further note the fact that he was just joking, which visibly eased her.

"So, how long will you be in for?" he asked, returning his attention to All Might.

"Oh, they're saying a week. Two at most," All Might replied, though Eri noticed the staleness in his voice, as though he had been rehearsing the response. She was sure her father caught it too, but he didn't comment.

"Good because Nemuri is taking over your classes," Aizawa smirked. "At least it's the beginning of the semester, so they won't be too far behind when you get back. Plenty of time to catch up."

All Might laughed. "I'm sure I'll be just fine. I don't know how many more years these old bones have teaching at UA anyway."

"You're going to leave UA?" Eri blurted out, her eyes wide with fear. She couldn't imagine the campus without All Might. Although he didn't teach combat courses, he was great with strategy and taught a course every year on hero diplomacy. He was also a friendly, constant face and she didn't want to think about what her home would be like without him.

All Might looked over at her, as though he had only just noticed she was in the room. With a smile that was partially hidden by his sunken face and hollow eyes, he reached over to weakly squeeze her hand. "Don't you worry, my dear," he said. "I'm not going anywhere any time soon."

"Good," she whispered back.

"How's school going?" All Might asked, guiding her closer to his bedside. "Or, how do you think it will go? I guess you haven't started back yet?"

"No, I start back Monday," Eri replied with a pout. "I can't wait until I'm an adult like you and don't have to go to school anymore."

All Might laughed weakly, though it was clear he was just restraining himself given the sorry state his lungs were in. Eri just smiled back, relaxing as his active conversation proved that he was doing well. She looked back at where her father had been standing to find him conferencing with Izuku and a doctor on the far side of the hospital room. She could barely hear their whispers, but she decided to chat with All Might rather than worry about what they could be talking about.

"Uncle Might, why do you end up in the hospital so often?" Eri asked, pulling up the chair next to All Might's bed.

"Well, my dear, I'm not what you would consider a very healthy person," All Might explained as the girl sat down. "You see, for generations, the Yagi's have always prided themselves on their ability to remain healthy. My mother and father weren't sick a day in their lives, nor were my siblings. But I didn't get my Quirk until I was a little older than you and up until then, I was sick pretty often. My Quirk masked my weak immune system until a few years ago when I used all of my power. Now I've been beaten down by battles and old injuries that won't go away." He lifted up the side of his thin hospital shirt and showed Eri the large purple and red bruise that blossomed across his stomach and into his lower chest. Eri swallowed thickly as she examined the wound and then looked back into All Might's hollow eyes.

"How did that happen?" Eri asked with wide eyes.

"Oh, there were many fights," All Might replied, lowering his shirt. "Kept getting hit in the same places. Being the number one hero has its drawbacks."

"Do you think," Eri started, then hesitated. For a moment, she chewed on the inside of her cheek before trying the question again in an even lower voice, "Do you think that could happen to Dad?"

All Might spared a glance at the back of Aizawa's head. He was still talking with Izuku in low voices and neither had noticed that the others in the room had shifted their gaze to them. Once he was looking back into Eri's earnest red eyes, he shook his head. "No, your dad's much smarter than me," All Might told her with a laugh. "And much less reckless. That's something he reminds me of quite often."

Eri nodded, satisfied with the answer she was given, but not comfortable at all with the condition All Might was in. "So, you're going to die?" she found herself blurting out before she could stop the intrusive thought at her lips.

All Might, to his credit, never wanted to scare a child, but he found himself nodding in answer to her question. Eri pressed her lips together as All Might grabbed her hand and squeezed it. "But I won't be going anywhere for a long while if I have anything to say about it."

"I wish I could help," Eri whispered, looking down at her lap. She felt pressure on her hand again and knew that All Might was trying to help her see the bright side of a sad situation.

"Oh, Eri, even if I could go back in time and redo those battles, I wouldn't," All Might explained. "I've gotten hurt, yes, but I saved a lot of people. I've gotten to do great things. And," He glanced to the back of Izuku's head, "I have a wonderful student who is well on his way to being a hero as great as I once was."

"I guess without you, Deku wouldn't have been able to save me, huh? Without your training?"

All Might smiled, a wide boney grin that managed to light up his hollow and pale face. "You're absolutely right, young lady. Though, you can't train someone to have a heart as big as his. That comes naturally."

Eri managed a smile back, though it was hard for her to find anything to be particularly happy about. Uncle Might was alive, but only for now. There was no telling how much time he really had left. It didn't seem like All Might himself even had any idea, but judging by how Deku was acting, he could go at any moment.

 _If I could go back and redo those battles._

Her head snapped up and she sucked in a sharp breath. Before All Might could ask what was on her mind, she blurted, "I have an idea! It's dangerous, though. Let me explain"

Aizawa heard the gasp from Eri and spared a quick glance over his shoulder towards the bed. Seeing everything was fine, he turned his attention back to Izuku. "You should get some rest," he told the other hero, who immediately shook his head. The doctor, who had left moments prior, had said the same thing.

"No, as I said, I'm going to stay here tonight," Izuku replied. "They're usually pretty good about letting me take the chair after visiting hours are up. I don't know if he put me down as family or something on his records, but no one ever gives me any trouble."

"You just told me this whole thing has made you exhausted," Aizawa pointed out. "You've gone on for the past ten minutes about how worried you are. And, I know you have patrol tomorrow." Izuku shrugged, but he looked away from his older teacher like he was a guilty student once again. "More importantly, _I_ don't need to be up all night worrying about two problem kids."

"Two?" Izuku asked, looking up once again. The man sighed and gestured over to Eri.

"I'm teaching Eri to control her Quirk, but she pushed herself a little too far yesterday and collapsed," he explained. "Once again I've made it clear to my student that you can't push yourself too far in training, and once again I'm not listened to. Remind you of anyone?"

Izuku laughed and rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. "To be honest, sensei, that was our entire class to an extent. I guess I was the worst of it huh?" He looked to the back of Eri's head with a soft expression on his face. "But I think that's great, that you're teaching her how to use her Quirk. And her pushing herself just means she really wants it."

"She's a great student," Aizawa conceded. "But her Quirk is wild and untrained and incredibly dangerous. I have her picking leaves off a bush like some sort of deranged gardener. I don't know how I'll be able to train her on an actual person or animal."

"You'll get there," Izuku replied. "She's strong and smart. If anyone has to have that Quirk of her's, I'm glad it's Eri. You've done a great job raising her."

Aizawa hid his grateful smile behind a lock of hair that had fallen to the side of his face. "I still mean what I said, though," he replied, hardening his tone. "I will make you leave this hospital, Midoriya, even if I have to drag you out with my capture weapon."

Izuku sighed and opened his mouth to respond, but a shriek from across the room caught their attention. At the same time, the pair whirled around to find Eri standing over All Might's bed, golden light surrounding both of them. Her hands were laid on All Might's side, right where his unhealed wound was. Even from a few feet away, they could clearly see the struggle on Eri's face to control her untamed Quirk.

As Izuku ran forward, Aizawa blinked quickly to activate his own Quirk. His hair immediately stood up on end as the glowing in the room ceased and the regular fading sunlight was able to stream back in. He extended his capture weapon just next to Eri's swaying form and caught her when she collapsed to the floor in a dead faint.


	7. Visions of the Past

_"I have an idea! It's dangerous, though. Let me explain."_

 _All Might furrowed his brows curiously at the girl and leaned a little forward in the bed. Eri leaned forward as well and dropped her voice to a whisper to ensure the others across the room didn't overhear them._

 _"Dad's been training me to use my Quirk," Eri explained. "I've been working on mending torn leaves and I've finally got it. It's clicking for me now, all of it! I can actually stop my Quirk whenever I want to."_

 _"That's amazing, Eri," All Might replied with a smile. "That must have taken a lot of work."_

 _"A_ lot _of work," Eri agreed with a nod. "But, Uncle Might, don't you see? I can fix you. I'll rewind your body to before you got injured. I'll stop just after I get rid of your big wound there. Then you won't need to be in the hospital anymore. You'll be fixed! You'll heal!"_

 _All Might opened his mouth and then shut it. Hesitating, he took a long breath in, and then slowly exhaled. This wasn't the first time the idea of using Eri's Quirk had come up. When Eri had first settled into Aizawa's home, the idea was floated, but it was determined to be far too risky. Eri could barely keep herself from activating the Quirk on her own never mind have any control over it. Then, once Aizawa was able to stop the spontaneous activation, the idea fell by the wayside in favor of letting the girl have a normal life._

 _But now, she was learning how to use and control that Quirk. It was perhaps All Might's only change at living much longer._

 _"How long have you been training?" he asked her in a tone that told her he was seriously considering the offer._

 _"Two weeks," Eri replied, embarrassed as a blush crossed her cheeks. "But I've got this. I know I do."_

 _All Might pursed his lips. Two weeks was hardly any time at all. Hell, he'd trained Midoriya for months and even then he still couldn't use One for All to its fullest extent. Of course, Eri's Quirk was a bit different, but there's no way a child could have such control over a power that strong in just two weeks._

 _Then again, All Might didn't know how much longer he had. The prognosis the doctor gave him wasn't good. He'd made it rather clear that it would be a miracle if All Might left the hospital this time around. This could be his only shot, the last ditch effort in saving his life. And, if it didn't work, he was destined to die anyway._

 _He looked over at Izuku who was still chattering on with Aizawa about something. Izuku who had taken up his mantle at such a young age. Who was destined to become the number one hero and who All Might saw as his own son. He knew that Izuku would be crushed if he passed, but the idea of leaving the boy behind devastated him as well. There was also the risk that All Might's death would hinder the boy's progress towards becoming number one. The world couldn't risk that._

 _"Alright."_

 _"Alright?" Eri asked, her eyes going wide. "Really?"_

 _"Right now," All Might nodded, moving her hand to his side. "Are you able to do that for me?"_

 _Silently, Eri nodded and placed her other hand on All Might's side. "Are you sure about this?" Eri asked him._

 _"Yes, now let's do this," All Might said. "Before I change my mind."_

 _Her heart thumping in her chest, Eri closed her eyes and drew out her Quirk. First, she used it to feel around All Might's broken body. His lungs were torn to shreds, his stomach was nonexistent, and his heart was weak. Brittle bones made up a wispy skeleton and muscles were all but whittled away. Eri had no idea of the extent of All Might's injuries. It would certainly be a lot to mend._

 _She decided to focus on the wounded side and started to pour her energy into it. For a brief moment, the wound got larger and more gruesome, indicating that she was getting it back to the state it was in when it first happened. Then, it disappeared. It was gone so fast, Eri almost forgot to stop, but luckily the caught herself in time. With another breath, she started to pull her hands from his side._

 _Eri tugged._

 _And tugged._

 _And tugged again._

 _Her heart caught in her throat. She couldn't move her hands. It was like All Might's side was magnetic and her hands were as well. Her power was still coursing through her and into All Might's body, but she wasn't able to remove her hands and shut her Quirk down. She reached inside of her and tried to pull the lever again, tried to shut everything off, but nothing was working. She realized, with a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, that she was going to kill All Might and there was nothing she could do about it._

 _"No!" Eri's shriek pierced the room. Then, in an instant, her powers stopped. Her fingers stopped glowing and she took a breath after realizing she'd been holding in air for quite a while._

 _The dark spots that had begun to dot the sides of her vision covered her eyes in full force. She swayed and then felt herself fall, but she never hit the ground. She just let darkness consume her as she heard her name being called in the distance._

 _"Eri."_

 _"Eri."_

"Eri!"

Aizawa grabbed his daughter as he sunk to the floor with her and shook her a little more roughly than he intended. Her head lolled to the side and he swept her bangs away to place a hand on her now burning forehead. "Eri, wake up!" he called again, tapping her cheeks. When he received no response, he looked up at Izuku who was leaning over the hospital bed.

"Midoriya, call a doctor right now," Aizawa ordered in a steely voice that had Izuku jamming the call button on the bedside immediately.

"What's going on?" Izuku called back, sparing a glance over his shoulder. Eri was tangled in Aizawa's capture mechanism as he continued to shake her in futile attempts to get her conscious again. It was rare for the hero to see his former teacher so openly worried. He knew his class had certainly stressed the man out considerably during their time at UA, but Aizawa wasn't one to show his emotions so plainly on his face. Right now, he looked downright _scared_.

"Eri's burning up, and the fever's only rising," Aizawa said to Eri's unconscious form. "Did you call for a doctor?"

"About ten times," Izuku replied, jamming the button a bit more for good measure.

"What about All Might?" Aizawa asked.

"Breathing," Izuku said. "Alive. Unconscious, but alive."

"Good." As the last letter left his tongue, the door burst open and two nurses hurried in. Seeing Aizawa on the ground with Eri and Izuku huddled over All Might's bed, they split themselves between the two groups.

The male nurse knelt down next to Aizawa and looked over Eri, though he was careful not to reach out and try to grab her. "What happened?" he asked as the other nurse came around the other side of the hospital bed.

"My daughter used her Quirk on him," Aizawa said, gesturing towards where All Might lay. "It's a very unstable Quirk and she's burning up. I can't get her to wake."

"What kind of Quirk is it?" the other man asked.

"A reversal Quirk. It rewinds a person's body. She was likely trying to use it to make Yagi well again."

The nurse glanced at his partner. "Did you get that?" he asked and received a sharp nod in return. Confident that she could handle the patient from there, he grabbed his pager and called for extra help. It was only another minute before another nurse came through the door wheeling a hospital bed. "May I?" the first nurse asked, reaching his arms out for Eri.

Although he knew they were there to help, Aizawa reluctantly let go of his daughter. With one smooth movement, the nurse lifted Eri onto the bed and wheeled her away. As they passed the door, he heard one call for Quirk suppressants and a drug Aizawa didn't recognize the name of.

Aizawa took a step towards the door to follow, but the last nurse bustling out of the room gave him pause. He turned and looked at Izuku who's expression was a mixture of shock and curiosity.

"Is Eri going to be-" the former student started, but Aizawa quickly cut him off.

"I don't know."

"Sensei, I know what you're thinking," Izuku started, walking over to Aizawa and placing a hand on his shoulder. "You're blaming yourself. I know that look. It's the same look you had after we were attacked at camp, and whenever anyone brings up the USJ incident. Eri made her own decision here. She might be a kid, but she's not that little. And we don't know that All Might didn't ask her to do it."

Aizawa shook his head, but he couldn't think of anything to say. Izuku was right, as much as he didn't want to admit it. He had far too many thoughts running through his head. Upset at knowing his daughter was once again incredibly ill. Anger that she would user her Quirk so openly without permission. And there was even a touch of hurt that the idea to do this had come and gone without her even running it by him.

"You really think All Might would ask a girl with an extremely unstable Quirk to use it on him? Knowing it could kill him?" Aizawa asked.

Izuku shrugged. "Yeah, it's a possibility." Aizawa shot him a disbelieving look and Izuku added, "You don't know how desperate he is to live."

This gave the man pause. "What do you mean?" he asked, relaxing his shoulders a little.

Izuku glanced to the bed and then looked back at Aizawa. "When Nighteye was alive, he told All Might he only had a few years to live. Every year he's gone past that deadline-seven of them-has been in direct defiance of a man who's Quirk was never wrong. Ever since he realized the vision didn't come true, he's been determined to live as long as possible." Izuku shoved a hand into his pocket and lowered his voice considerably. "He'd do anything."

Aizawa didn't know what to say. Although he'd gotten closer to the lanky ex-hero over the past few years, he had no idea just how hard he was fighting for his life. Everyone knew of Nighteye's visions. Even today, some were still playing out just as he had described nearly a decade before. He'd never heard of one simply not coming true. Sure, some were realized in roundabout ways, but no Quirk was perfect, but never had there been one that was simply skipped.

There were a lot of things he wanted to add to the conversation. He thought it was stupid that All Might was desperate enough to use an unstable Quirk to lengthen his life. However, he couldn't help but realize this was all so he could see the fate of his successor play out. Izuku was already a pro-hero, and every day he was getting closer and closer to the number one spot. Sure, he had years to go still, but there wasn't a doubt in anyone's mind that he could do it.

"Midoriya," Aizawa mumbled out, turning to face his former student with a soft expression. As he opened his mouth to continue, a low groan from the bed stole away the attention in the room. Izuku instantly jerked to the side, starting to walk away before he remembered that Aizawa was about to tell him something. When he looked back at the man, he just waved him off. "Go make sure that idiot is alright," he said. "I need to go check on Eri."

"I'll be over in a few minutes," Izuku rushed out before turning his back to Aizawa and hurrying to All Might's bedside. As Aizawa walked out of the room, he heard the two talking in whispers and the distinct sound of All Might hushing Izuku's tears.

Once he could no longer hear either Izuku or All Might, he quickened his pace towards the reception desk on the floor. When he approached the counter, a nurse glanced up at him from her computer.

"My name is Shota Aizawa," he started before she could greet him. "My daughter, Eri, was taken a few minutes ago after using her Quirk and fainting. She had a high fever and I'm not sure where she is now."

"A girl with a high fever from using her Quirk?" the nurse repeated, glancing back to her computer screen. "The reversal one?"

"Yes," Aizawa confirmed.

The nurse moved her mouse on the screen and then started typing something in. "She was admitted, but they're still working to bring the fever down," she said after reading whatever had come up from her search.

"Can I see her?"

"I'll page a doctor if you'll wait in the waiting room for a few minutes," she offered, gesturing to the room opposite the desk with glass walls and uncomfortable chairs. Aizawa hesitated, but there weren't exactly other options.

He sulked off to the waiting room, but couldn't find it in him to actually sit down. For the past hour, he'd been on autopilot. Between the news about All Might and Izuku's worried muttering, and now Eri, he'd barely had time to register any emotions of his own. Now all he could feel was a deep seeded sense of worry creeping through his body. Of course, he worried over Eri. That was the nature of being a dad, but this was different. Eri was incredibly sick and he'd watched her pour her power into All Might in the hopes of saving him. He was furious she would think that was a good idea, but also proud she'd been so selfless, and now he was beyond scared that the news the doctor would give wouldn't be great.

Thankfully, it didn't take long before a man in a white coat came from around the corner. Aizawa walked right over to him and asked, "How is she?"

The doctor blinked and then looked down at his clipboard. "Aizawa?" he asked.

"Yes," he bit, irritated at the delay. "How is she?"

"We've used the Quirk stabilizers and it's helping," the doctor said. "She's not out of the woods yet, but we're getting her there." Aizawa let out a long breath through his nose and nodded. He was going to ask more questions, but the doctor continued. "I have to ask, though, can you explain to me exactly what happened?"

He was reluctant to do so. When Eri was a young child, he could explain away her reckless behavior with her age. Though she was still a child, it wouldn't be so easy to explain a twelve-year-old wasn't in control of her own Quirk. Plus, it was pretty obvious she had known what she was doing.

Still, he couldn't lie. Not when her life was on the line. He told the doctor what he saw and what he could easily infer was going through her mind. To his credit, the doctor didn't gasp or scowl or show much of any expression on his face. He just jotted down a few notes with a couple well-placed nods.

"Alright, follow me," the doctor waved his hand forward, motioning for Aizawa to follow him. The pair walked down the long hospital corridor until they paused at yet another room. Aizawa was so sick of hospital rooms and nearly gagged at the concentrated sanitized smell that hit him the moment they opened the door. Between old friends and colleagues, students caught in situations they should never have been in, and now his own daughter, Aizawa would give almost anything if this was the last time he ever had to step foot in a hospital.

When the doctor stepped aside so Aizawa could survey the room, the man felt like he was being transported back in time. Surely this was a different hospital room, but everything felt so similar. The bed, the beeping, the white-haired little girl lying on her back in the middle of the room. They had even shut the blinds so the last bit of evening sunlight wouldn't increase the temperature in the room or bother the fevered patient.

Eri looked so small in the big hospital bed. Bigger, of course, than she had been seven years before, but still entirely too small. Her eyebrows were knit together and a mask over her mouth captured every puffy breath. Her silver hair was splayed all around and her bangs were clumped together from the sweat on her brow.

"She's not out of the woods yet." The doctor's voice startled Aizawa, but he didn't turn around. "But we're monitoring."

"Thank you," Aizawa replied in an almost inaudible voice. He didn't notice the doctor leave the room as he slunk over to the chair by the bedside.

 _Aizawa heard the bed shift but hardly spared a glance as he leafed through Todoroki's essay. It wasn't until he heard soft coughing that he looked up once again and was met with big scared red eyes. His breath caught in his throat and he sat, unmoving, as he stared at the little girl in the hospital bed. If she said anything, he couldn't tell due to the mask helping her to breathe._

 _"Hey," he whispered, as though that single word would calm the child. When her expression didn't change, he added, "You're safe." That seemed to do the trick. She visibly relaxed and Aizawa placed his papers on the nightstand. He noticed how her eyes drooped and her fingers let go of their tight hold on the blankets._

 _"You're in the hospital," he found himself continuing. "It's a place where they'll make you better, but you need to rest. You've been asleep for a few days now."_

 _She looked so tiny, like the bed would swallow her up. It was amazing she was even conscious now given what the nurses said about her condition. Eri was an incredible little girl, and she was also incredibly sick. He could see fresh bandages wrapped around her right arm and he knew her other arm and legs were also newly bandaged. She had many scars and a few open wounds and the bandages they'd found her in were dirty and old. Beyond the scars, she was malnourished. Though he hadn't seen more than her face above the covers, the nurses told him they could see her ribs._

 _He was angry. Angry at the people who did this to her. Angry that no one had found her for so long. And angry at the world itself for turning its back on an innocent child. How she'd managed to survive for so long was beyond him, but it was clear that Eri was special. He swore right then that he'd do anything he could to ensure she never felt this pain again._

 _"And you're never going back there."_

 _He couldn't really see it, but he could tell that she was smiling under her mask. Her eyes slipped closed and he couldn't help the upward turn of his own lips as he watched her fall back into a far more comfortable sleep._

 _Aizawa leaned forward._

And took her hand in his own.


End file.
